Wiktionary
n. A small crack in a bone caused by repeated stress.
WordNet
n. fracture resulting from excessive activity rather than a specific injury [syn: fatigue fracture]
Wikipedia
Stress fracture, also known as a hairline fracture, is a fatigue-induced fracture of the bone caused by repeated stress over time. Instead of resulting from a single severe impact, stress fractures are the result of accumulated trauma from repeated submaximal loading, such as running or jumping. Because of this mechanism, stress fractures are common overuse injuries in athletes.
Stress fractures can be described as a very small sliver or crack in the bone; and are sometimes referred to as "hairline fractures". Stress fractures most frequently occur in weight-bearing bones, such as the tibia (bone of the lower leg), metatarsals, and navicular bones (bones of the foot). Less common are fractures to the femur, pelvis, and sacrum.
Usage examples of "stress fracture".
A stress fracture - to be sure, thinner than the vertical one they were now on -snaked its way almost laterally, more or less bisecting the chimney.
One leg of the tripod had twisted a little, enough to make a stress fracture at the base, where it was welded to the body of the ship.
I was a half a day away from the end of the ordeal, and I got a stress fracture in my leg.
He picks it up and turns it over in his palm, looking at the rust and the shining steel inside the stress fracture.
Turned out he had a stress fracture in his leg, but we didn't know it at the time.