/ ˈkrʌmbl; NAmE / verb , noun
■ verb
1.
to break or break sth into very small pieces :
[ v ]
Rice flour makes the cake less likely to crumble.
[ vn ]
Crumble the cheese over the salad.
2.
[ v ] if a building or piece of land is crumbling , parts of it are breaking off :
buildings crumbling into dust
crumbling stonework
The cliff is gradually crumbling away.
3.
[ v ] crumble (into / to sth) | crumble (away) to begin to fail or get weaker or to come to an end :
a crumbling business / relationship
All his hopes began to crumble away.
The empire finally crumbled into dust.
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IDIOMS
see way noun
■ noun
[ U , C ] ( BrE ) a dessert (= a sweet dish) made from fruit that is covered with a rough mixture of flour, butter and sugar, cooked in the oven and usually served hot :
apple crumble and custard
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WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English : probably from an Old English word related to crumb .