Collide
verbTo strike or crash into something, or for two moving things to hit each other with force.
How to spell collide
7 letters · 2 syllables
How to pronounce collide
Say the part in capitals loudest.
What does collide mean?
- verbTo strike or crash into something, or for two moving things to hit each other with force.
Collide in a sentence
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The report explained how the two cars came to collide at the junction.
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Engineers design barriers so that a vehicle will not collide with the central reservation.
Where does collide come from?
Language of origin: Latin
This word comes from the Latin verb collidere, meaning 'to strike together' or 'to dash against'. It was formed from the prefix com-, meaning 'together', combined with laedere, the verb 'to strike, hurt, or injure'. When the prefix attached, com- shifted to col- before the letter l, which is why the modern spelling carries the doubled l in 'col-' followed by 'lide'. English took the word up in the early 1600s, initially in the literal sense of two solid bodies smashing into each other, and it later broadened to figurative clashes of opinions, schedules, or interests. The same laedere root also hides inside 'lesion', a medical word for an injury, which is a useful reminder that the heart of collide is the idea of striking and damaging.
How the word is built
- col- (from com-: together)
- -lide (from Latin laedere: to strike or dash against)
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