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Define fatigue in brief

Short answer

Fatigue is failure under repeated cyclic stresses, with crack initiation, growth and sudden fracture even at stresses below ultimate strength. The stress below which a material can withstand infinite cycles is the endurance limit.

Define fatigue as a property of materials.

Fatigue is the failure of a material under repeated or fluctuating (cyclic) stresses, even when the maximum stress is much lower than the ultimate tensile strength.

Failure starts as a tiny crack at a point of stress concentration, grows with every load cycle and ends in sudden fracture. The stress below which a material can bear an infinite number of cycles is called the endurance (fatigue) limit. Fatigue is important for bridges, crane girders, railway tracks and machine parts.

✓ Answer checked by Claude Opus 5.5 (high effort)

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