cracked

American  

[krakt] / krækt /

adjective

1. broken.

   a container full of cracked ice.

2. broken without separation of parts; fissured.

3. damaged; injured.

4. Informal. eccentric; mad; daffy.

   a charming person, but a bit cracked.

5. broken in tone, as the voice.

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idioms

1. cracked up to be, reported or reputed to be (usually used in the negative).

   I hear the play is not what it's cracked up to be.

cracked British  

/ krækt /

adjective

1. damaged by cracking

2. informal crazy

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Other Word Forms

• uncracked adjective

Etymology

Origin of cracked

First recorded in 1400–50, cracked is from the late Middle English word crachyd. See crack, -ed ²

Example Sentences

“I don’t know that anyone has cracked the nut.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 21, 2026

Shockwaves from a March 9 airstrike also damaged tiles and cracked frescoes at the 17th-century Chehel Sotoun Palace in Isfahan.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026

One Ranger cracked a rib after his snowmobile flipped over, but "he kept on going", Lt-Col Hanes said.

From BBC • Apr. 12, 2026

Said Nichols: “Affordable options for senior living on college campuses have not largely been cracked before.”

From MarketWatch • Apr. 10, 2026

A wave cracked against the side of the boat, and he shook himself.

From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell

Related Words

• broken
• damaged
• fractured