crumb

Meaning

Noun

1. (countable, uncountable) A small piece which breaks off from baked food (such as cake, biscuit or bread).
2. (countable, uncountable) A small piece of any other solid substance.
3. (countable, figuratively, uncountable) A bit, small amount.
4. (abbreviation, alt-of, countable, ellipsis, uncountable) Ellipsis of crumb rubber.
5. (countable, uncountable) The soft internal portion of bread, surrounded by crust.
6. (countable, uncountable) A mixture of sugar, cocoa and milk, used to make industrial chocolate.
7. (countable, slang, uncountable) A nobody; a worthless person.
8. (countable, slang, uncountable) A body louse (Pediculus humanus).

Verb

1. (transitive) To cover with crumbs.
2. (transitive) To break into crumbs or small pieces with the fingers; to crumble.

Synonyms

bit

grain

scrap

fragment

morsel

particle

bread

🍞

piece

chip

dirty dog

bite

bum

git

lowlife

lump

nibble

puke

rat

🐀

remnant

rotter

skunk

🦨

so-and-so

stinker

stinkpot

taste

tidbit

food scraps

discarded food

scum bag

spot

mite

breadcrumb

mhewu also occurs

bits and pieces

pellet

baby

👶

pinch

pith

cumularsharolith

quad

soft part of bread

coat with breadcrumbs

tip

babe

shred

titbit

small piece

snippet

B

🅱️

soil

Translations

miette

briciola

Krümel

mie

miga

kruimel

migaja

migalha

Krume

panieren

🍞

Brösel

mollica

engruna

broodkruimel

Pronounced as (IPA)

/kɹʌm/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: crome

Inherited from Old English: cruma

Cognate with Dutch: kruim

Cognate with Low German: Krome

Cognate with German: Krume

Cognate with Danish: krumme

In summary

From Middle English crome, cromme, crumme, crume, from Old English cruma (“crumb, fragment”), from Proto-Germanic *krumô, *krūmô (“fragment, crumb”), from Proto-Indo-European *grū-mo- (“something scraped together, lumber, junk; to claw, scratch”), from *ger- (“to turn, bend, twist, wind”). The b is unetymological, as in limb, appearing in the mid-15th century to match crumble and words like dumb, numb, thumb. Cognate with Dutch kruim (“crumb”), Low German Krome, Krume (“crumb”), German Krume (“crumb”), Danish krumme (“crumb”), Swedish dialectal krumma (“crumb”), Swedish inkråm (“crumbs, giblets”), Icelandic krumur (“crumb”), Latin grūmus (“a little heap”).