Break

[n] an escape from jail; "the breakout was carefully planned"
[n] any frame in which a bowler fails to make a strike or spare; "the break in the eighth frame cost him the match"
[n] a sudden dash; "he made a break for the open door"
[n] the act of breaking something; "the breakage was unavoidable"
[n] an act of delaying or interrupting the continuity; "it was presented without commercial breaks"
[n] (tennis) a score consisting of winning a game when your opponent was serving; "he was up two breaks in the second set"
[n] the opening shot that scatters the balls in billiards or pool
[n] a pause from doing something (as work); "we took a 10-minute break"; "he took time out to recuperate"
[n] a personal or social separation (as between opposing factions); "they hoped to avoid a break in relations"
[n] an unexpected piece of good luck; "he finally got his big break"
[n] the occurrence of breaking; "the break in the dam threatened the valley"
[n] some abrupt occurrence that interrupts; "the telephone is an annoying interruption"; "there was a break in the action when a player was hurt"
[n] (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"
[n] breaking of hard tissue such as bone; "it was a nasty fracture"; "the break seems to have been caused by a fall"
[n] a time interval during which there is a temporary cessation of something
[v] weaken or destroy in spirit or body; "For a hero loves the world till it breaks him"--Yeats
[v] come into being; "light broke over the horizon"; "Voices broke in the air"
[v] diminish or discontinue abruptly; "The patient's fever broke last night"
[v] fracture a bone of; "I broke my foot while playing hockey"
[v] fall sharply; "stock prices broke"
[v] make submissive, obedient, or useful, as of wild animals or new items; also used metaphorically of people; "The horse was tough to break"; "I broke in the new intern"
[v] be broken in; "If the new teacher won't break, we'll add some stress"
[v] of the male voice in puberty; "his voice is breaking--he should no longer sing in the choir"
[v] render inoperable or ineffective; "You broke the alarm clock when you took it apart!"
[v] become separated into pieces or fragments; "The figurine broke"; "The freshly baked loaf fell apart"
[v] destroy the integrity of; usually by force; cause to separate into pieces or fragments; "He broke the glass plate"; "She broke the match"
[v] become fractured; break or crack on the surface only; "The glass cracked when it was heated"
[v] happen, as of an event; "Report the news as it develops"; "These political movements recrudesce from time to time"
[v] prevent completion; "stop the project"; "break the silence"
[v] stop and wait, as if awaiting further instructions or developments; "Hold on a moment!"; "We broke at noon"
[v] end prematurely; "She interrupted her pregnancy"; "break a lucky streak"
[v] lessen in force or effect; "soften a shock"; "break a fall"
[v] 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"
[v] change suddenly from one tone quality or register to another; "Her voice broke to a whisper when she started to talk about her children"
[v] find the solution or key to; "break the code"
[v] find a flaw in; "break an alibi"
[v] undergo breaking; "The simple vowels broke in many Germanic languages"
[v] interrupt the flow of current in; "break a circuit"
[v] cease an action temporarily; "We pause for station identification"; "let's break for lunch"
[v] 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"
[v] be released or become known; of news; "News of her death broke in the morning"
[v] surpass in excellence; "She bettered her own record"; "break a record"
[v] divide into pieces, as by bending or cutting; "break the loaf of bread"; "break the crackers"
[v] pierce or penetrate; "The blade broke her skin"
[v] become punctured or penetrated; "The skin broke"
[v] pierce the surface of; "The fish broke the water"
[v] break a piece from a whole; "break a branch from a tree"
[v] go to pieces; "The lawn mower finally broke"; "The gears wore out"; "The old chair finally fell apart completely"
[v] ruin completely; "He busted my radio!"
[v] separate from a clinch, in boxing; "The referee broke the boxers"
[v] make the opening shot that scatters the balls, in billiards or pool
[v] destroy the completeness of a set of related items; "The book dealer would not break the set"
[v] exchange for smaller units of money; "I had to break a $100 bill just to buy the candy"
[v] force out or release suddenly and often violently something pent up; "break into tears"; "erupt in anger"
[v] do a break dance; "Kids were break-dancing at the street corner"
[v] curl over and fall apart in surf or foam, of waves; "The surf broke"
[v] 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"
[v] emerge from the surface, as of fish in water; "The whales broke"
[v] scatter or part; "The clouds broke after the heavy downpour"
[v] make a rupture in the ranks of the enemy or one's own by quitting or fleeing (military usage); "The ranks broke"
[v] move away or escape suddenly; "The horses broke from the stable"; "Three inmates broke jail"
[v] change directions suddenly
[v] reduce to bankruptcy; "My daughter's fancy wedding is going to break me!"
[v] assign to a lower position; reduce in rank; "She was demoted because she always speaks up"
[v] 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"
[v] stop or interrupt; "He broke the engagement"; "We had to break our plans for a trip to China"
[v] invalidate by judicial action; "The will was broken"
[v] interrupt a continued activity; "She had broken with the traditional patterns"
[v] cause the failure or ruin of; "His peccadilloes finally broke his marriage"; "This play will either make or break the playwright"
[v] act in disregard of laws and rules; "offend all laws of humanity"; "violate the basic laws or human civilization"; "break a law"
[v] enter someone's 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!"
[v] happen or take place; "Things have been breaking pretty well for us in the past few months" (informal)
[v] come forth or begin from a state of latency; "The first winter storm broke over New York"
[v] fail to agree with; be in violation of; as of rules or patterns; "He violated the agreement to stay away from his ex-wife"; "You are breaking the law!"
[v] give up; "break cigarette smoking"
[v] cause to give up a habit; "She finally broke herself of smoking cigarettes"
[v] vary or interrupt a uniformity or continuity; "The flat plain was broken by sharply mesas"
[v] come to an end; "The heat wave finally broke yesterday"

More Break Links

• See poems containing the word: Break.
• See quotes containing the word: Break.
• How many syllables are in Break.
• What rhymes with Break?

Synonyms

bankrupt, better, breach, breach, break dance, break in, break in, break of serve, break off, break off, break up, breakage, break-dance, breaking, breakout, bring out, bump, burst, bust, check, come apart, damp, dampen, demote, develop, disclose, discont

Antonyms

advance, bushel, conform to, doctor, elevate, fix, furbish up, kick upstairs, make, mend, promote, raise, repair, restore, touch on, upgrade

Related Terms

abeyance, about ship, about-face, abrade, abrasion, abscond, abysm, abyss, accidentality, acclimate, acclimatize, accommodate, accommodation, accustom, actuarial calculation, adapt, adaptation, adjust, adjustment, adventitiousness, agree to disagree, alie