crumbs

Noun

crumb (countable and uncountable, plural crumbs)

1. A small piece which breaks off from baked food (such as cake, biscuit or bread).
   • The pigeons were happily pecking at crumbs of bread on the ground.

   Synonyms:

   crumbling, crumblet

2. A small piece of any other solid substance.
   • Then erase any pencil lines with a good, soft eraser, rubbing gently, in only one direction. A dustbrush can be useful in removing any eraser crumbs.2012, Caroline Joy Adams, An Italic Calligraphy Handbook, page 79

   Synonyms:

   chip, crumbling, bit, chunk, tranche, clip, cutting, flake, fleak, fragment

3. (figuratively) A bit, small amount.
   • a crumb of comfort

   Synonyms:

   grain, morsel, ace, atom, thought, atomy, aught, bissel, continental, bit

4. The soft internal portion of bread, surrounded by crust.
   • Dust unto dust, what must be, must; / If you can't get crumb, you'd best eat crust.1861, Thomas Hughes, Tom Brown at Oxford
5. A mixture of sugar, cocoa and milk, used to make industrial chocolate.
6. (slang) A nobody; a worthless person.
   • All Dad can think of is a gift certificate from the Melody Inn? And my crumb of a boyfriend doesn't even show up? This is a birthday?1999, Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, Alice on the Outside, page 146

   Synonyms:

   loser, quidam, absolute zero, also-ran, chopped liver, cipher, Joe Nobody, little guy, minnow, nebbish

See all 10 meanings of crumb