Synonyms

interrupt

Examples

"She interrupted her pregnancy" "break a lucky streak" "break the cycle of poverty"

Synonyms

separate come_apart fall_apart split_up

Examples

"The figurine broke" "The freshly baked loaf fell apart"

Examples

"You broke the alarm clock when you took it apart!"

Examples

"He broke the glass plate" "She broke the match"

Synonyms

bust

Examples

"He busted my radio!"

Synonyms

violate transgress breach go_against infract offend

Examples

"offend all laws of humanity" "violate the basic laws or human civilization" "break a law"

Examples

"The clouds broke after the heavy downpour"

Synonyms

burst erupt

Examples

"break into tears" "erupt in anger"

Synonyms

stop break_off discontinue

Examples

"stop the project" "break the silence"

Synonyms

break_away break_out

Examples

"The horses broke from the stable" "Three inmates broke jail" "Nobody can break out--this prison is high security"

Synonyms

break_in

Examples

: "The horse was tough to break" used metaphorically for people

Synonyms

abrupt_change interruption

Examples

"the telephone is an annoying interruption" "there was a break in the action when a player was hurt"

Synonyms

break_in

Examples

"Someone broke in while I was on vacation" "They broke into my car and stole my radio!"

Synonyms

disclose reveal expose declare discover give_away let_out divulge let_on impart bring_out

Examples

"The auction house would not disclose the price" "She won't reveal her age" "bring out the truth" "he broke the news to her"

Synonyms

better

Examples

"She bettered her own record" "break a record"

Synonyms

happy_chance good_luck

Examples

"he finally got his big break"

Examples

"light broke over the horizon" "Voices broke in the air"

Synonyms

fail break_down die go_bad conk_out give_out go give_way

Examples

"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"

Synonyms

violate go_against

Examples

"He violated the agreement to stay away from his ex-wife" "You are breaking the law!"

Synonyms

breaking breakage

Examples

"the breakage was unavoidable"

Examples

"If the new teacher won't break, we'll add some stress"

Synonyms

geological_fault fault_line fracture shift fault

Examples

"they built it right over a geological fault"

Examples

"The surf broke"

Synonyms

break_away

Examples

"She had broken with the traditional patterns"

Synonyms

soften damp weaken dampen

Examples

"soften a shock" "break a fall"

Synonyms

breach severance rift falling_out rupture

Examples

"they hoped to avoid a break in relations"

Synonyms

respite time_out recess

Examples

"we took a 10-minute break" "he took time out to recuperate"

Examples

"The ranks broke"

Synonyms

break_up split part separate split_up

Examples

"The business partners broke over a tax question" "The couple separated after 25 years of marriage" "My friend and I split up"

Examples

"He broke the glass plate" "She broke the match"

Examples

"Her voice broke to a whisper when she started to talk about her children"

Examples

"His peccadilloes finally broke his marriage" "This play will either make or break the playwright"

Examples

"break the code"

Examples

"The patient's fever broke last night"

Examples

"Things have been breaking pretty well for us in the past few months" (informal)

Examples

"The simple vowels broke in many Germanic languages"

Examples

"break an alibi" "break down a proof"

Examples

"break a circuit"

Synonyms

pause intermit

Examples

"We pause for station identification" "let's break for lunch"

Examples

"stock prices broke"

Synonyms

fracture

Examples

: "I broke my foot while playing hockey"

Examples

"His resistance was broken" "a man broken by the terrible experience of near-death"

Examples

"The blade broke her skin"

Synonyms

get_around get_out

Examples

"News of her death broke in the morning"

Examples

: "The skin broke"

Examples

"The fish broke the water"

Examples

"his voice is breaking--he should no longer sing in the choir"

Synonyms

wear_out fall_apart bust wear

Examples

"The lawn mower finally broke" "The gears wore out" "The old chair finally fell apart completely"

Synonyms

snap_off break_off

Examples

"break a branch from a tree"

Examples

"the break in the dam threatened the valley"

Synonyms

interruption disruption gap

Examples

"it was presented without commercial breaks"

Synonyms

open_frame

Examples

"the break in the eighth frame cost him the match"

Synonyms

break_up

Examples

"The book dealer would not break the set"

Examples

"The referee broke the boxers"

Examples

"I had to break a $100 bill just to buy the candy"

Synonyms

break-dance break_dance

Examples

"Kids were break-dancing at the street corner"

Synonyms

recrudesce develop

Examples

"Report the news as it develops" "These political movements recrudesce from time to time"

Synonyms

crack check

Examples

"The glass cracked when it was heated"

Synonyms

break_of_serve

Examples

"he was up two breaks in the second set"

Examples

"The whales broke"

Synonyms

collapse fall_in cave_in give_way give founder

Examples

"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"

Synonyms

hold_on stop

Examples

"Hold on a moment!" "We broke at noon"

Synonyms

break_away

Examples

"break the loaf of bread" "break the crackers"

Synonyms

fracture

Examples

"it was a nasty fracture" "the break seems to have been caused by a fall"

Examples

"The will was broken"

Synonyms

relegate demote kick_downstairs bump

Examples

"She was demoted because she always speaks up" "He was broken down to Sargeant"

Synonyms

bankrupt smash ruin

Examples

"My daughter's fancy wedding is going to break me!" "The slump in the financial markets smashed him"

Synonyms

pause suspension interruption intermission

Examples

"The first winter storm broke over New York"

Examples

"he made a break for the open door"

Examples

: "break cigarette smoking"

Examples

"She finally broke herself of smoking cigarettes"

Examples

"The flat plain was broken by sharply mesas"

Examples

"The heat wave finally broke yesterday"

Synonyms

jailbreak gaolbreak prisonbreak prison-breaking breakout

Examples

"the breakout was carefully planned"