Tumble vs Collapse - What's the difference?

tumble | collapse |


In intransitive terms the difference between tumble and collapse

is that tumble is to fall end over end while collapse is to pass out and fall to the floor or ground, as from exhaustion or other illness; to faint.

In transitive terms the difference between tumble and collapse

is that tumble is to smooth and polish a rough surface on relatively small parts while collapse is to cause something to collapse.

tumble

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • A fall.
    • I took a tumble down the stairs and broke my tooth.
  • An act of sexual intercourse.
  • * John Betjeman, Group Life: Letchworth
    • Wouldn't it be jolly now, / To take our Aertex panters off / And have a jolly tumble in / The jolly, jolly sun?
  • * 1979 , Martine, Sexual Astrology (page 219)
    • When you've just had a tumble between the sheets and are feeling rumpled and lazy, she may want to get up so she can make the bed.

    Derived terms

    * rough and tumble * take a tumble * tumble dryer * tumbler * give a tumble

    Verb

    (tumbl)
  • (lb) To fall end over end.
  • *(Robert South) (1634–1716)
  • *:He who tumbles from a tower surely has a greater blow than he who slides from a molehill.
  • *
  • *:“Heavens!” exclaimed Nina, “the blue-stocking and the fogy!—and yours are'' pale blue, Eileen!—you’re about as self-conscious as Drina—slumping there with your hair tumbling ''à la Mérode! Oh, it's very picturesque, of course, but a straight spine and good grooming is better.”
  • To perform gymnastics such as somersaults, rolls, and handsprings.
  • :(Rowe)
  • To roll over and over.
  • *1908 , (Kenneth Grahame), (The Wind in the Willows)
  • *:The two animals tumbled over each other in their eagerness to get inside, and heard the door shut behind them with great joy and relief.
  • (lb) To have sexual intercourse.
  • (lb) To smooth and polish a rough surface on relatively small parts.
  • To muss, to make disorderly; to tousle or rumple.
  • :

    • Derived terms

    * tumble to

    collapse

    English

    (wikipedia collapse)

    Verb

    (collaps)
  • To fall down suddenly; to cave in
  • * Maunder
    • A balloon collapses when the gas escapes from it.
  • To cease to function due to a sudden breakdown; to fail suddenly and completely
    • Pyramid schemes tend to generate profits for a while and then collapse .
  • To fold compactly
  • (cricket) For several batsmen to get out in quick succession
  • To cause something to collapse.
    • Hurry up and collapse the tent so we can get moving.
  • To pass out and fall to the floor or ground, as from exhaustion or other illness; to faint
    • The exhausted singer collapsed onstage and had to be taken to the hospital.

    Derived terms

    * collapsible

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • The act of collapsing
  • * {{quote-news
    • , year=2012 , date=April 21 , author=Jonathan Jurejko , title=Newcastle 3-0 Stoke , work=BBC Sport citation , page= , passage=The top six are assured of continental competition and after making a statement of intent against Stoke, it would take a dramatic collapse for Newcastle to surrender their place.}}
  • Constant function, one-valued function (in automata theory) (in particular application causing a reset)

    • Anagrams

    * English ergative verbs ----