breaking
Variant of break
break (brāk)
transitive verb broke, broken bro′·ken, breaking break′·ing
- to cause to come apart by force; split or crack sharply into pieces; smash; burst
- to cut open the surface of (soil, the skin, etc.)
- to fracture a bone of
- to cause the failure of by force or extralegal measures to break a strike
- to make unusable or inoperative by cracking, disrupting, etc.
- to tame or make obedient with or as with force
- to cause to get rid (of a habit)
- to get rid of (a habit)
- to lower in rank or grade; demote
- to reduce to poverty or bankruptcy
- to ruin the chance for success of
- to wreck the health, spirit, etc. of
- to surpass (a record)
- to fail to follow the terms of (a law, promise, agreement, etc.); violate
- to open or enter by force: now chiefly in break and enter
- to escape from by force to break prison
- to disrupt the order or completeness of; make irregular the troops broke formation and ran
- to interrupt (a journey, electric circuit, etc.)
- to reduce the force of by interrupting (a fall, the wind, etc.)
- to bring to a sudden end to break a tie
- to make or create (a path, way, etc.) as by removing obstructions
- to cut through or penetrate (silence, darkness, etc.)
- to make known; tell; disclose
- to decipher to break a code
- to succeed in solving to break a criminal case
- to make (a will) invalid by legal process
- to prove (an alibi) to be false
- to begin; open; start
- to exchange (a bill or coin) for smaller units
- to open (a rifle or shotgun) at the breech
- Tennis to win a game from (an opponent who is serving)
Etymology: ME breken < OE brecan < IE base *bhreg- > breach, breech, Ger brechen, L frangere
intransitive verb
- to split into pieces; come apart; burst
- to scatter; disperse to break and run
- to force one's way (through obstacles or resistance)
- to quarrel; stop associating (with)
- to become unusable or inoperative; go out of order
- to suffer a sudden fall in prices, financial condition, etc.
- to change suddenly, as by a sharp rise, fall, turn, shift, etc. his voice broke; the hot spell broke
- to move away suddenly the base runner broke for second
- to move apart, or withdraw, from a clinch in boxing
- ☆ to move into a gait other than the trot or pace required: said of a horse in harness racing
- to begin suddenly to utter, perform, etc.: with into, forth in, or out in to break into song
- to come suddenly into being, evidence, or general knowledge day was breaking; the story broke
- to appear suddenly above water, as a periscope, fish, etc.
- ☆ to stop activity temporarily we broke for lunch
- to fall apart slowly; disintegrate
- to dash apart, as a wave on the shore
- to suffer a collapse of health, vitality, spirit, etc.
- to change into a diphthong: said of vowels
- ☆ to curve, dip, or rise near the plate: said of a pitched baseball
- ☆ to begin a game of pocket billiards with a break ()
- Informal to happen in a certain way things were breaking badly
noun
- a breaking open or apart; breach; fracture
- a breaking in, out, or forth
- ☆ a sudden move away or toward; rush; dash
- the result of a breaking; broken place; separation; crack
- a beginning or appearance the break of day
- an interruption of a regular or continuous arrangement, action, etc.
- the result of this; a gap, interval, pause, omission, rest, etc.
- a breach in friendly relations
- a sudden change, as in weather
- ☆ an escape, as from prison
- ☆ a sudden lowering or drop, as of prices
- an imperfection; flaw
- an unbroken series or sequence, as of points in billiards
- ☆ the opening shot in a game of pocket billiards, in which the cue ball must come into contact with at least one ball in the rack; often, a shot that scatters the racked balls
- ☆ Basketball fast break
- ☆
- a piece of luck, often specif. of good luck
- an advantage or opportunity
- exceptional or favorable treatment
- Music
- the point where one register changes to another
- the abrupt change in quality of a voice or instrument at this point
- in jazz, a brief, usually improvised passage by one band member who continues to play while the others stop
- Printing
- a space between paragraphs
- the place at which a column or page of text stops, to be continued as on another column or page
- a point at which a word is divided, as at the end of a line
break a leg!
☆break away
break down
- to go out of working order
- to give way to tears or emotion
- to have a physical or nervous collapse
- to crush or overcome (opposition, etc.)
- to separate into parts; analyze
break even
☆break in
- to enter forcibly or unexpectedly
- to interrupt
- to train (a beginner)
- ☆ to prepare (something new) by use or wear
break off
- to stop abruptly, as in talking
- to stop being friendly or intimate
break out
- to begin suddenly
- to escape suddenly
- to become covered with pimples or a rash
- Naut. to bring out of stowage for use break out the foul weather gear
- Informal to bring out (anything) for use
break up
- to separate; dispersealso, esp. as a command, break it up
- to take apart; dismantle and scrap
- to put a stop to
- Informal to end a relationship
- ☆ Informal to distress or upset greatly
- ☆ Informal to laugh or make laugh uncontrollably
give someone a break
☆Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Browse dictionary definitions near breaking
Share on Facebook