GNU Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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Found 2 definitions

1.       
   Fracture , n. [L. fractura, fr. frangere, fractum, to break: cf. F. fracture. See Fraction.]
   The act of breaking or snapping asunder; rupture; breach.
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   (Surg.) The breaking of a bone.
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   (Min.) The texture of a freshly broken surface; as, a compact fracture; an even, hackly, or conchoidal fracture.
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   Comminuted fracture (Surg.), a fracture in which the bone is broken into several parts. -- Complicated fracture (Surg.), a fracture of the bone combined with the lesion of some artery, nervous trunk, or joint. -- Compound fracture (Surg.), a fracture in which there is an open wound from the surface down to the fracture. -- Simple fracture (Surg.), a fracture in which the bone only is ruptured. It does not communicate with the surface by an open wound.
   Syn. -- Fracture, Rupture. These words denote different kinds of breaking, according to the objects to which they are applied. Fracture is applied to hard substances; as, the fracture of a bone. Rupture is oftener applied to soft substances; as, the rupture of a blood vessel. It is also used figuratively. “To be an enemy and once to have been a friend, does it not embitter the rupture?”
   South.
   
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2.       
   Fracture , v. t. [imp. & p. p. Fractured ; p. pr. & vb. n.. Fracturing.] [Cf. F. fracturer.] To cause a fracture or fractures in; to break; to burst asunder; to crack; to separate the continuous parts of; as, to fracture a bone; to fracture the skull.
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