Crispy describes food with a thin, brittle texture that breaks or crunches when you bite it. Fresh potato chips are crispy. Perfectly cooked bacon is crispy. Toast right out of the toaster is crispy, but leave it sitting too long and it turns soft and chewy.

The word captures that satisfying snap and crackle you hear and feel when biting into certain foods. A crispy apple makes an audible crunch. Crispy fried chicken has a crunchy coating that shatters slightly when you bite through it. Pizza crust can be soft or crispy, depending on how it's baked.

Crispy is different from crunchy, though people sometimes use them interchangeably. Crispy usually means thinner and more delicate, something that breaks easily, while crunchy often describes thicker, harder foods like raw carrots or granola. A crispy autumn leaf crumbles in your hand. A crunchy pretzel requires serious chewing.

When cooking, getting something crispy usually means removing moisture through heat. That's why fried foods are crispy, why vegetables get crispy when roasted at high temperatures, and why cereal gets soggy (loses its crispiness) when milk makes it wet again.