Standard Lemma guide

collide

verb · 7 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK, US: /kəˈlaɪd/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -aɪd
  • CMU ARPABET: K AH0 L AY1 D Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

verb

Meaning 1

To impact directly, especially if violent.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

Examples

  • When a body collides with another, then momentum is conserved.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

verb

Meaning 2

To come into conflict, or be incompatible.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

Examples

  • China collided with the modern world.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

verb

Meaning 3

To meet; to come into contact.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive, poetic

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

verb

Meaning 4

To cause to collide.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

verb

Meaning 5

crash together with violent impact

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • The cars collided
  • Two meteors clashed

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: clash

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: hit, strike, impinge on, run into, collide with

Narrower terms: smash, shock, crash, ram

6

verb

Meaning 6

cause to collide

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • The physicists collided the particles

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Narrower terms: crash

7

verb

Meaning 7

be incompatible; be or come into conflict

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • These colors clash

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: clash, jar

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: conflict

History

Etymology

From Latin collīdō (“to clash, strike, dash, beat, or press together”), from con- (“together”) + laedō (“to strike, collide, hurt”) (whence col- (“assimilated form of com-”)).

Across languages

Translations

92 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Albanian: ndesh — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Arabic: اِصْطَدَمَ (iṣṭadama) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Azerbaijani: toqquşmaq — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Basque: talka egin — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Belarusian: сутыка́цца (sutykácca) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Belarusian: сту́кнуцца (stúknucca) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Bulgarian: сблъ́сквам се (sblǎ́skvam se) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Bulgarian: сблъ́скам се (sblǎ́skam se) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Bulgarian: у́дрям се (údrjam se) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Bulgarian: уда́ря се (udárja se) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Catalan: xocar — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Chinese Mandarin: 碰撞 (pèngzhuàng) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Chinese Mandarin: 相撞 (xiāngzhuàng) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Czech: srážet se — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Czech: srazit se — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Danish: kollidere — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Dutch: botsen — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Esperanto: kolizii — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Finnish: törmätä — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • French: entrer en collision — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • French: heurter — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • French: percuter — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Galician: colidir — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • German: kollidieren — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • German: zusammenstoßen — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • German: plauzen — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Greek: συγκρούομαι (sygkroúomai) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Greek: προσκρούω (proskroúo) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Hebrew: הִתְנַגֵּשׁ (hitnagésh) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • White Hmong: tsoo — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Hungarian: összeütközik — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Hungarian: beleütközik — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Hungarian: nekiütközik — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Italian: urtare — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Italian: scontrarsi — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Japanese: 衝突する (shōtotsu suru) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Japanese: 打つかる (butsukaru) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Jeju: 다닥이다 (dadagida) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Jeju: 부대끼다 (budaekkida) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Khmer: បុកគ្នា (bokkniə) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Korean: 충돌하다 (chungdolhada) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Korean: 부딪히다 (budichida) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Korean: 부딪치다 (buditchida) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Latin: confligo — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Luxembourgish: kollidéieren — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Māori: hūtuki — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Māori: tūtuki — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Mongolian: мөргөлдөх (mörgöldöx) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Polish: zderzać się — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Polish: zderzyć się — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Portuguese: colidir — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Portuguese: chocar — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Russian: ста́лкиваться (stálkivatʹsja) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Russian: столкну́ться (stolknútʹsja) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Serbo-Croatian: су̀дарити се — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Serbo-Croatian: sùdariti se — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Slovak: zraziť sa — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Spanish: colisionar — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Spanish: colidir — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Swedish: kollidera — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Swedish: krocka — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Thai: โดน (doon) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Thai: ชน (chon) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Ukrainian: зішто́вхуватися (zištóvxuvatysja) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Ukrainian: зіштовхну́тися (zištovxnútysja) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Ukrainian: стика́тися (stykátysja) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Ukrainian: зіткну́тися (zitknútysja) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Ukrainian: сту́катися (stúkatysja) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Ukrainian: сту́кнутися (stúknutysja) — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Vietnamese: đụng nhau — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Yoruba: kọlù — to impact directly, especially if violent
  • Azerbaijani: toqquşmaq — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • Chinese Mandarin: 衝突 /冲突 (chōngtū) — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • Chinese Mandarin: 抵觸 /抵触 (dǐchù) — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • Finnish: törmätä — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • Galician: colidir — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • German: kollidieren — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • German: aufeinander stoßen — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • Greek: συγκρούομαι (sygkroúomai) — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • Greek: αντικρούομαι (antikroúomai) — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • White Hmong: tsoo — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • Hungarian: ellenkezik — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • Hungarian: ütközik — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • Hungarian: ellentétben áll/van — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • Hungarian: sért — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • Japanese: 衝突する (shōtotsu suru) — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • Polish: kolidować — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • Portuguese: colidir — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • Swedish: kollidera — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • Swedish: krocka — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • Ukrainian: стика́тися (stykátysja) — to come into conflict, or be incompatible
  • Ukrainian: зіткну́тися (zitknútysja) — to come into conflict, or be incompatible