cra ‧ ter /ˈkreɪtə $ -ər/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Date: 1600-1700 ; Language: Latin ; Origin: 'bowl for mixing things, crater' , from Greek krater , from kerannynai 'to mix' ]
1 . a round hole in the ground made by something that has fallen on it or by an explosion:
craters on the moon’s surface
2 . the round open top of a ↑ volcano
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THESAURUS
▪ hole an empty space in the surface of something, which sometimes goes all the way through it:
A fox had dug a hole under our fence.
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Rain was coming in through a hole in the roof.
▪ space an empty area between two things, into which you can put something:
Are there any empty spaces on the bookshelf?
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a parking space
▪ gap an empty area between two things or two parts of something, especially one that should not be there:
He has a gap between his two front teeth.
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I squeezed through a gap in the hedge.
▪ opening a hole that something can pass through or that you can see through, especially at the entrance of something:
The train disappeared into the dark opening of the tunnel.
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I looked through the narrow opening in the wall.
▪ leak a small hole where something has been damaged or broken that lets liquid or gas flow in or out:
a leak in the pipe
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The plumber's coming to repair the leak.
▪ puncture especially British English a small hole in a tyre through which air escapes:
My bike's got a puncture.
▪ crack a very narrow space between two things or two parts of something:
The snake slid into a crack in the rock.
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She was peering through the crack in the curtains.
▪ slot a straight narrow hole that you put a particular type of object into:
You have to put a coin in the slot before you dial the number.
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A small disk fits into a slot in the camera.
▪ crater a round hole in the ground made by an explosion or by a large object hitting it hard:
a volcanic crater
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The meteor left a crater over five miles wide.
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the craters on the moon