as in crossroads
a time or state of affairs requiring prompt or decisive action
the governor responded swiftly and surely to the crisis
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Recent Examples of crises
Gas is still cheaper than in several prior geopolitical crises and energy is a smaller share of people's expenses.
—
Jessica Guynn, USA Today, 1 Apr. 2026
Structural adjustment programs devastated social services through budget cuts and user fees, creating barriers for the poor to access basic health care and education, while the liberalization of mining sectors caused severe environmental degradation and health crises.
—Sven Van Mourik, The Dial, 31 Mar. 2026
Brooks is still wont to assume that social crises are a function of our personal habits, not economic or political injustice, and his methodological tics are the same as ever.
—Becca Rothfeld, New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2026
Chicago’s finances present several overlapping crises.
—Bill Conway, Chicago Tribune, 30 Mar. 2026
The Fed chair, who made the comments on Monday to an undergraduate economics class at Harvard University, covered a lot of ground during his hour-long appearance, including the financial system's capacity to weather future crises.
—Mary Cunningham, CBS News, 30 Mar. 2026
The Church of the Holy Speluchre has historically remained open to clergy even during major crises, including past wars and pandemics, making Palm Sunday’s restriction a rare flashpoint in already strained relations between Israel and the Vatican.
—Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 30 Mar. 2026
The conflict has sparked one of the world's largest humanitarian crises, displacing at least 7 million people in eastern Congo, but the people still feel hopeful.
—ABC News, 30 Mar. 2026
That shift has made Red Sea routes—and by extension nearby chokepoints such as the Bab el‑Mandeb—far more consequential to global energy markets than in previous crises, heightening concerns that renewed Houthi attacks could disrupt a key alternative lifeline for oil supplies.
—Steve Mollman, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Mar. 2026
Jessica Guynn, USA Today, 1 Apr. 2026
Structural adjustment programs devastated social services through budget cuts and user fees, creating barriers for the poor to access basic health care and education, while the liberalization of mining sectors caused severe environmental degradation and health crises.
—Sven Van Mourik, The Dial, 31 Mar. 2026
Brooks is still wont to assume that social crises are a function of our personal habits, not economic or political injustice, and his methodological tics are the same as ever.
—Becca Rothfeld, New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2026
Chicago’s finances present several overlapping crises.
—Bill Conway, Chicago Tribune, 30 Mar. 2026
The Fed chair, who made the comments on Monday to an undergraduate economics class at Harvard University, covered a lot of ground during his hour-long appearance, including the financial system's capacity to weather future crises.
—Mary Cunningham, CBS News, 30 Mar. 2026
The Church of the Holy Speluchre has historically remained open to clergy even during major crises, including past wars and pandemics, making Palm Sunday’s restriction a rare flashpoint in already strained relations between Israel and the Vatican.
—Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 30 Mar. 2026
The conflict has sparked one of the world's largest humanitarian crises, displacing at least 7 million people in eastern Congo, but the people still feel hopeful.
—ABC News, 30 Mar. 2026
That shift has made Red Sea routes—and by extension nearby chokepoints such as the Bab el‑Mandeb—far more consequential to global energy markets than in previous crises, heightening concerns that renewed Houthi attacks could disrupt a key alternative lifeline for oil supplies.
—Steve Mollman, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for crises
Noun
-
Strikes have repeatedly hit areas near Qa’im, a town on the border with Syria, and near Rutba, a key crossroads on the Amman–Baghdad route and a strategic gateway toward Syria and Jordan.—
Kevin Liptak,
CNN Money,
1 Apr. 2026
-
Vance appears poised to stand at the crossroads of those varying interests.—
Gabe Kaminsky,
CBS News,
31 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Animal Services officers are available seven days a week, 24 hours a day, to respond to animal emergencies.—
Janay Reece,
CBS News,
29 Mar. 2026
-
One of those signees, named Allison, highlighted the lost time to work and school each year due to dental care, including dental pain and emergencies.—
Lance Reynolds,
Boston Herald,
29 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
That’s because many federal immigration laws are built around the presumption of birthright citizenship and don’t address situations like that, though the laws could change.—
Maureen Groppe,
USA Today,
31 Mar. 2026
-
Instead of posing questions about geography or world affairs, the test asked him to tackle hypothetical situations, from the frustrating to the dangerous.—
David D. Kirkpatrick,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
For certain great artists, Meis believes, the creative act is a safe harbor where life’s pressures, exigencies, and calamities aren’t so much denied or resolved as reimagined as pictorial dramas.—
Jed Perl,
The New York Review of Books,
4 Apr. 2026
-
It will be encumbered neither by norms nor the exigencies that compel speech in a democratic society.—
Casey Ryan Kelly,
The Conversation,
9 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Too many department heads are cronies, not experienced experts.—
Hal Valderhaug,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
4 Apr. 2026
-
Peach heads for the Galaxy Gateway with Toad (Keegan-Michael Key), while Mario, Luigi and their new dino pal Yoshi (Donald Glover) hold things down with the ‘shrooms … for a while anyway.—
Katie Walsh,
Twin Cities,
4 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Crises.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/crises. Accessed 5 Apr. 2026.
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