noun

cracking

KRA-kihng

noun

The industrial process of breaking down large molecules, such as crude oil, using heat, to produce fuels like gasoline.

"The refinery uses cracking to turn crude oil into usable fuel."

adjective

British informal: excellent or great.

"That was a cracking performance from the whole team."

adverb

British informal: very, used for emphasis with praise.

"She did a cracking good job on the presentation."

How to Use Cracking

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishThe industrial fuel-refining process, or, in British slang, "excellent" or "very."

UK vs US

The "excellent" sense is chiefly British and rarely used this way in American English.

Common pairings

cracking performance oil cracking get cracking

crackings plural

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The refinery uses _____ to turn crude oil into usable fuel.

hacking backing lacking jacking sacking racking blacking clacking tracking quacking smacking whacking