v. To cause to separate into pieces suddenly or violently; smash.v. To divide into pieces, as by bending or cutting: break crackers for a baby. v. To separate into components or parts: broke the work into discrete tasks. v. To snap off or detach: broke a twig from the tree. v. To fracture a bone of: I broke my leg. v. To fracture (a bone): I broke my femur. v. To crack without separating into pieces.v. To destroy the completeness of (a group of related items): broke the set of books by giving some away. v. To exchange for smaller monetary units: break a dollar. v. To vary or disrupt the uniformity or continuity of: a plain that was broken by low hills; caught the ball without breaking stride. v. Electricity To render (a circuit) inoperative by disruption; open.v. To force or make a way through; puncture or penetrate: The blade barely broke the skin. v. To part or pierce the surface of: a dolphin breaking water. v. To produce (a sweat) copiously on the skin, as from exercise.v. To force one's way out of; escape from: break jail. v. To make or bring about by cutting or forcing: break a trail through the woods. v. To find an opening or flaw in: They couldn't break my alibi. v. To find the solution or key to; uncover the basic elements and arrangement of: break a code; break a spy ring. v. To make known, as news: break a story. v. To surpass or outdo: broke the league's home-run record. v. To overcome or put an end to, especially by force or strong opposition: break a deadlock in negotiations; break a strike. v. Sports To win a game on (an opponent's service), as in tennis.v. To lessen the force or effect of: break a fall. v. To render useless or inoperative: We accidentally broke the radio. v. To weaken or destroy, as in spirit or health; overwhelm with adversity: "For a hero loves the world till it breaks him” ( William Butler Yeats). v. To cause the ruin or failure of (an enterprise, for example): Indiscretion broke both marriage and career. v. To reduce in rank; demote.v. To cause to be without money or to go into bankruptcy.v. To fail to fulfill; cancel: break an engagement. v. To fail to conform to; violate: break the speed limit. v. Law To invalidate (a will) by judicial action.v. To give up (a habit).v. To cause to give up a habit: They managed to break themselves of smoking. v. To train to obey; tame: The horse was difficult to break. verb-intransitive. To become separated into pieces or fragments.verb-intransitive. To become cracked or split.verb-intransitive. To become fractured: His arm broke from the fall. verb-intransitive. To become unusable or inoperative: The television broke. verb-intransitive. To give way; collapse: The scaffolding broke during the storm. verb-intransitive. To burst: The blister broke. verb-intransitive. To intrude: They broke in upon our conversation. verb-intransitive. To filter in or penetrate: Sunlight broke into the room. verb-intransitive. To scatter or disperse; part: The clouds broke after the storm. verb-intransitive. Games To make the opening shot that scatters the grouped balls in billiards or pool.verb-intransitive. Sports To separate from a clinch in boxing.verb-intransitive. Sports To win a game on the opponent's service, as in tennis: broke twice in the first set. verb-intransitive. To move away or escape suddenly: broke from his grip and ran off. verb-intransitive. To come forth or begin from a state of latency; come into being or emerge: A storm was breaking over Miami. Crocuses broke from the soil. verb-intransitive. To emerge above the surface of water.verb-intransitive. To become known or noticed: The big story broke on Friday. verb-intransitive. To change direction or move suddenly: The quarterback broke to the left to avoid a tackler. verb-intransitive. Baseball To curve near or over the plate: The pitch broke away from the batter. verb-intransitive. To change suddenly from one tone quality or musical register to another: His voice broke into a falsetto. verb-intransitive. Linguistics To undergo breaking.verb-intransitive. To change to a gait different from the one set. Used of a horse.verb-intransitive. To interrupt or cease an activity: We'll break for coffee at ten. verb-intransitive. To discontinue an association, an agreement, or a relationship: The partners broke over a financial matter. One hates to break with an old friend. verb-intransitive. To diminish or discontinue abruptly: The fever is breaking. verb-intransitive. To diminish in or lose physical or spiritual strength; weaken or succumb: Their good cheer broke after repeated setbacks. verb-intransitive. To decrease sharply in value or quantity: Stock prices broke when the firm suddenly announced layoffs. verb-intransitive. To come to an end: The cold spell broke yesterday. verb-intransitive. To collapse or crash into surf or spray: waves that were breaking along the shore. verb-intransitive. Informal To take place or happen; proceed: Things have been breaking well for them. verb-intransitive. To engage in breaking; break dance.n. The act or an occurrence of breaking.n. The result of breaking, as a crack, separation, or opening: a break in the clouds. n. The beginning or emergence of something: the break of day n. A sudden movement; a dash: The dog made a break toward the open field. n. An escape: a prison break. n. An interruption or a disruption in continuity or regularity: television programming without commercial breaks. n. A pause or interval, as from work: a coffee break. n. A sudden or marked change: a break in the weather. n. A violation: a security break. n. An often sudden piece of luck, especially good luck: finally got the big break in life. n. Informal An allowance or indulgence; accommodating treatment: The boss gave me a break because I'd been sick. n. Informal A favorable price or reduction: a tax break for charitable contributions. n. A severing of ties: made a break with the past; a break between the two families. n. Informal A faux pas.n. A sudden decline in prices.n. A caesura.n. Printing The space between two paragraphs.n. Printing A series of three dots ( . . . ) used to indicate an omission in a text.n. Printing The place where a word is or should be divided at the end of a line.n. Electricity Interruption of a flow of current.n. Geology A marked change in topography such as a fault or deep valley.n. Nautical The point of discontinuity between two levels on the deck of a ship.n. Music The point at which one register or tonal quality changes to another.n. Music The change itself.n. Music A solo jazz cadenza that is played during the pause between the regular phrases or choruses of a melody or that serves as an introduction to a more extended solo.n. A change in a horse's gait to one different from that set by the rider.n. Sports The swerving of a ball from a straight path of flight, as in baseball or cricket.n. Sports The beginning of a race.n. Sports A fast break.n. Sports A rush toward the goal, as in hockey, by offense players in control of the puck or ball, often against fewer defenders: a three-on-one break. n. Sports The separation after a clinch in boxing.n. Games The opening shot that scatters the grouped balls in billiards or pool.n. Games A run or unbroken series of successful shots, as in billiards or croquet.n. Sports & Games Failure to score a strike or a spare in a given bowling frame.n. Sports A service break.n. A high horse-drawn carriage with four wheels.n. Break dancing.phrasal-verb. break away To separate or detach oneself, as from a group.phrasal-verb. break away To move rapidly away from or ahead of a group: The cyclist broke away from the pack. phrasal-verb. break away To discontinue customary practice.phrasal-verb. break down To cause to collapse; destroy: break down a partition; broke down our resolve. phrasal-verb. break down To become or cause to become distressed or upset.phrasal-verb. break down To have a physical or mental collapse.phrasal-verb. break down To give up resistance; give way: prejudices that break down slowly. phrasal-verb. break down To fail to function; cease to be useful, effective, or operable: The elevator broke down. phrasal-verb. break down To render or become weak or ineffective: Opposition to the king's rule gradually broke down his authority. phrasal-verb. break down To divide into or consider in parts; analyze.phrasal-verb. break down To be divisible; admit of analysis: The population breaks down into three main groups. phrasal-verb. break down To decompose or cause to decompose chemically.phrasal-verb. break down Electricity To undergo a breakdown.phrasal-verb. break in To train or adapt for a purpose.phrasal-verb. break in To loosen or soften with use: break in new shoes. phrasal-verb. break in To enter premises forcibly or illegally: a prowler who was trying to break in. phrasal-verb. break in To interrupt a conversation or discussion.phrasal-verb. break in To intrude.phrasal-verb. break in To begin an activity or undertaking: The Senator broke in during the war years. phrasal-verb. break into To interrupt: "No one would have dared to break into his abstraction” ( Alan Paton). phrasal-verb. break into To begin suddenly: The horse broke into a wild gallop. The child broke into a flood of tears. phrasal-verb. break into To enter (a field of activity): broke into broadcast journalism at an early age. phrasal-verb. break off To separate or become separated, as by twisting or tearing.phrasal-verb. break off To stop suddenly, as in speaking.phrasal-verb. break off To discontinue (a relationship).phrasal-verb. break off To cease to be friendly.phrasal-verb. break out To become affected with a skin eruption, such as pimples.phrasal-verb. break out To develop suddenly and forcefully: Fighting broke out in the prison cells. phrasal-verb. break out To ready for action or use: Break out the rifles! phrasal-verb. break out To bring forth for consumption: Let's break out the champagne. phrasal-verb. break out To emerge or escape.phrasal-verb. break out To be separable or classifiable into categories, as data.phrasal-verb. break out To isolate (information) from a large body of data.phrasal-verb. break through To make a sudden, quick advance, as through an obstruction.phrasal-verb. break up To separate or be separated into pieces: She broke up a chocolate bar. The river ice finally broke up. phrasal-verb. break up To interrupt the uniformity or continuity of: An impromptu visit broke up the long afternoon. phrasal-verb. break up To scatter; disperse: The crowd broke up after the game. phrasal-verb. break up To cease to function or cause to stop functioning as an organized unit or group: His jazz band broke up. The new CEO broke up the corporation. phrasal-verb. break up To bring or come to an end: Guards broke up the fight. They argued, and their friendship broke up. phrasal-verb. break up Informal To burst or cause to burst into laughter.idiom. break a leg Used to wish someone, such as an actor, success in a performance.idiom. break bread To eat together.idiom. break camp To pack up equipment and leave a campsite.idiom. break cover To emerge from a protected location or hiding place: The platoon broke cover and headed down the road. idiom. break even To gain an amount equal to that invested, as in a commercial venture.idiom. break ground To begin a new construction project.idiom. break ground To advance beyond previous achievements.idiom. break new ground To advance beyond previous achievements: broke new ground in the field of computers. idiom. break (one's) neck To make the utmost possible effort.idiom. rank To fall into disorder, as a formation of soldiers.idiom. rank To fail to conform to a prevailing or expected pattern or order: "Architectural experts have criticized the plaza in the past because it breaks rank with the distinctive façades of neighboring Fifth Avenue blocks, whose buildings are flush with the sidewalk” ( Sharon Churcher). idiom. break (someone's) heart To disappoint or dispirit someone severely.idiom. break the bank To require more money than is available.idiom. break the ice To make a start.idiom. break the ice To relax a tense or unduly formal atmosphere or social situation.idiom. break wind To expel intestinal gas.