Noun
-
an escape from jail
"the breakout was carefully planned"
- prisonbreak - prison breaking -
any frame in which a bowler fails to make a strike or spare
"the break in the eighth frame cost him the match"
- open frame -
a sudden dash
"he made a break for the open door"
-
an act of delaying or interrupting the continuity
"it was presented without commercial breaks"
"there was a gap in his account"
-
(tennis) a score consisting of winning a game when your opponent was serving
"he was up two breaks in the second set"
- break of serve -
the opening shot that scatters the balls in billiards or pool
-
an abrupt change in the tone or register of the voice (as at puberty or due to emotion)
"then there was a break in her voice"
-
the occurrence of breaking
"the break in the dam threatened the valley"
-
breaking of hard tissue such as bone
"it was a nasty fracture"
"the break seems to have been caused by a fall"
-
a time interval during which there is a temporary cessation of something
-
the act of breaking something
"the breakage was unavoidable"
-
a pause from doing something (as work)
"we took a 10-minute break"
"he took time out to recuperate"
- time out -
a personal or social separation (as between opposing factions)
"they hoped to avoid a break in relations"
- falling out -
(geology) a crack in the earth's crust resulting from the displacement of one side with respect to the other
"they built it right over a geological fault"
"he studied the faulting of the earth's crust"
- geological fault -
an unexpected piece of good luck
"he finally got his big break"
- good luck - happy chance -
some abrupt occurrence that interrupts an ongoing activity
"the telephone is an annoying interruption"
"there was a break in the action when a player was hurt"
Verb
-
weaken or destroy in spirit or body
"His resistance was broken"
"a man broken by the terrible experience of near-death"
-
diminish or discontinue abruptly
"The patient's fever broke last night"
-
fracture a bone of
"I broke my foot while playing hockey"
-
fall sharply
"stock prices broke"
-
crack
of the male voice in puberty
"his voice is breaking--he should no longer sing in the choir"
-
become fractured
break or crack on the surface only
"The glass cracked when it was heated"
-
happen
"Report the news as it develops"
"These political movements recrudesce from time to time"
-
change suddenly from one tone quality or register to another
"Her voice broke to a whisper when she started to talk about her children"
-
find the solution or key to
"break the code"
-
find a flaw in
"break an alibi"
"break down a proof"
-
undergo breaking
"The simple vowels broke in many Germanic languages"
-
interrupt the flow of current in
"break a circuit"
-
cease an action temporarily
"We pause for station identification"
"let's break for lunch"
-
be released or become known
of news
"News of her death broke in the morning"
- get out - get around -
pierce or penetrate
"The blade broke her skin"
-
become punctured or penetrated
"The skin broke"
-
break a piece from a whole
"break a branch from a tree"
- break off - snap off -
go to pieces
"The lawn mower finally broke"
"The gears wore out"
"The old chair finally fell apart completely"
- wear out - fall apart -
separate from a clinch, in boxing
"The referee broke the boxers"
-
make the opening shot that scatters the balls
-
destroy the completeness of a set of related items
"The book dealer would not break the set"
- break up -
exchange for smaller units of money
"I had to break a $100 bill just to buy the candy"
-
do a break dance
"Kids were break-dancing at the street corner"
- break dance - break dance -
break down, literally or metaphorically
"The wall collapsed"
"The business collapsed"
"The dam broke"
"The roof collapsed"
"The wall gave in"
"The roof finally gave under the weight of the ice"
- fall in - cave in - give way -
emerge from the surface of a body of water
"The whales broke"
-
change directions suddenly
-
reduce to bankruptcy
"My daughter's fancy wedding is going to break me!"
"The slump in the financial markets smashed him"
-
assign to a lower position
reduce in rank
"She was demoted because she always speaks up"
"He was broken down to Sergeant"
- kick downstairs -
discontinue an association or relation
go different ways
"The business partners broke over a tax question"
"The couple separated after 25 years of marriage"
"My friend and I split up"
- split up - break up -
invalidate by judicial action
"The will was broken"
-
cause the failure or ruin of
"His peccadilloes finally broke his marriage"
"This play will either make or break the playwright"
-
happen or take place
"Things have been breaking pretty well for us in the past few months"
-
come forth or begin from a state of latency
"The first winter storm broke over New York"
-
give up
"break cigarette smoking"
-
cause to give up a habit
"She finally broke herself of smoking cigarettes"
-
vary or interrupt a uniformity or continuity
"The flat plain was broken by tall mesas"
-
come to an end
"The heat wave finally broke yesterday"
-
be broken in
"If the new teacher won't break, we'll add some stress"
-
lessen in force or effect
"soften a shock"
"break a fall"
-
curl over and fall apart in surf or foam, of waves
"The surf broke"
-
make a rupture in the ranks of the enemy or one's own by quitting or fleeing
"The ranks broke"
-
interrupt a continued activity
"She had broken with the traditional patterns"
- break away -
stop operating or functioning
"The engine finally went"
"The car died on the road"
"The bus we travelled in broke down on the way to town"
"The coffee maker broke"
"The engine failed on the way to town"
"her eyesight went after the accident"
- go bad - give way - give out - conk out - break down -
come into being
"light broke over the horizon"
"Voices broke in the air"
-
make known to the public information that was previously known only to a few people or that was meant to be kept a secret
"The auction house would not disclose the price at which the van Gogh had sold"
"The actress won't reveal how old she is"
"bring out the truth"
"he broke the news to her"
"unwrap the evidence in the murder case"
- let on - bring out - give away - let out -
surpass in excellence
"She bettered her own record"
"break a record"
-
fail to agree with
be in violation of
as of rules or patterns
"This sentence violates the rules of syntax"
- go against -
make submissive, obedient, or useful
"The horse was tough to break"
"I broke in the new intern"
- break in -
enter someone's (virtual or real) property in an unauthorized manner, usually with the intent to steal or commit a violent act
"Someone broke in while I was on vacation"
"They broke into my car and stole my radio!"
"who broke into my account last night?"
- break in -
prevent completion
"stop the project"
"break off the negotiations"
- break off -
force out or release suddenly and often violently something pent up
"break into tears"
"erupt in anger"
-
scatter or part
"The clouds broke after the heavy downpour"
-
move away or escape suddenly
"The horses broke from the stable"
"Three inmates broke jail"
"Nobody can break out--this prison is high security"
- break out - break away -
act in disregard of laws, rules, contracts, or promises
"offend all laws of humanity"
"violate the basic laws or human civilization"
"break a law"
"break a promise"
- go against -
destroy the integrity of
usually by force
cause to separate into pieces or fragments
"He broke the glass plate"
"She broke the match"
-
ruin completely
"He busted my radio!"
-
render inoperable or ineffective
"You broke the alarm clock when you took it apart!"
-
become separated into pieces or fragments
"The figurine broke"
"The freshly baked loaf fell apart"
- split up - fall apart - come apart -
terminate
"She interrupted her pregnancy"
"break a lucky streak"
"break the cycle of poverty"