frac•ture
Pronunciation: (frak'chur), [key] — n., v., -tured, -tur•ing.
—n. - the breaking of a bone, cartilage, or the like, or the resulting condition. Cf. comminuted fracture, complete fracture, compound fracture, greenstick fracture, simple fracture.
- the act of breaking; state of being broken.
- a break, breach, or split.
- the characteristic manner of breaking: a material of unpredictable fracture.
- the characteristic appearance of a broken surface, as of a mineral.
—v.t. - to cause or to suffer a fracture in (a bone, etc.).
- to break or crack.
- to amuse highly or cause to laugh heartily; delight: The new comic really fractured the audience.
—v.i. - to become fractured; break: a mineral that does not fracture easily.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.