collision
noun
Simple meaning
The process or mechanism of determining whether two shapes are partially occupying the same space.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
kuhlizhuhnSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
kəˈlɪʒən
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
computingchiefly video games
The process or mechanism of determining whether two shapes are partially occupying the same space.
physics
A brief event in which two or more bodies come together
“The collision of the particles resulted in an exchange of energy and a change of direction.”
physics
Any event in which two or more bodies exert forces on each other in a relatively short time. In a collision, physical contact of two bodies is not necessary.
An instance of colliding.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B2 · Upper Intermediate
- Frequency
- Moderately Common
- Typical Use
- Neutral / general English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: The process or mechanism of determining whether two shapes are partially occupying the same space.
Used this way, collision is a specialist word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. This is a computing use: it carries a fixed technical meaning inside software and systems work.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Specialist/technical
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Specialized
- Connotation
- Clinical and technical
- Usage feel
- Technical and specialized
Where it naturally appears
- Technology
- Technical/specialist writing
- Business/professional
Usage note
In general conversation this sense usually needs explaining — outside its field, people reach for a plainer word.
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use collision
- “The collision of the particles resulted in an exchange of energy and a change of direction.”noun
- “Three passengers were killed in the collision.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
A course of a moving object that will lead to a collision if it continues unchanged.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.