Synonyms of break
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as in to disrupt 
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as in to stop
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as in to reduce
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as in to decipher
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as in to pause
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as in to plow
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as in to violate
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as in to solve
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as in to damage
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as in to die
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as in to retreat
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as in to wear
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as in to circulate
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as in to ruin
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as in to begin
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as in to veer
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as in to depress
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as in to exceed
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as in to surface
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as in pause
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as in vacation
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as in gap
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as in opportunity
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as in accident
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as in escape
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Example Sentences
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Phrases Containing
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1
as in to disrupt
to cause to separate into pieces usually suddenly or forcibly
hated telling her that I had broken her favorite glass vase
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2
as in to stop
to bring (as an action or operation) to an immediate end
the final vote broke the deadlock
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3
as in to reduce
to bring to a lower grade or rank
the captain was broken to lieutenant commander for disobeying a direct order from his group commander
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4
as in to decipher
to change (as a secret message) from code into ordinary language
Alan Turing and the Bletchley Park mathematicians broke the Enigma code being used by the Nazis
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5
as in to pause
to come to a temporary halt in one's activity
she broke from her ruminations to find that it was already dinnertime
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6
7
as in to violate
to fail to keep
had to confess that he had broken his promise not to share their conversation with anyone
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8
as in to solve
to find an answer for through reasoning
Professor Bates broke the problem when she realized that it was possible to synthesize the necessary compounds
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9
as in to damage
to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of
I broke a tooth on the hard candy
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10
as in to die
to stop functioning
after working for 30 years, the pump simply broke one day
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11
as in to retreat
to hasten away from something dangerous or frightening
the herd of gazelles broke when they saw the lions racing toward them from the ridge above
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12
as in to wear
to use up all the physical energy of
the trek up the mountain just about broke me
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13
as in to circulate
to become known
as soon as the scandal broke, the CEO fled the country
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as in to begin
to come into existence
the crisis had passed, and a new day was breaking
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16
as in to veer
to depart abruptly from a straight line or course
the running back broke to his left before running out of bounds
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17
as in to depress
to diminish the price or value of
distressing economic news that will break many energy stocks
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18
as in to exceed
to go beyond the limit of
a menu with prices that is likely to break the budgets of all but the wealthiest of diners
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1
as in pause
a momentary halt in an activity
there was a brief break after the first movement as the doors to the concert hall were opened and the latecomers were allowed in
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2
as in vacation
a period during which the usual routine of school or work is suspended
most of the students at the boarding school are going home for Christmas break
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3
as in gap
an open space in a barrier (as a wall or hedge)
the rancher repaired the break in the fence where the horse had gotten through
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4
5
as in accident
an unexpected benefit or advantage resulting from the uncertain course of events
a guy who just seems to get all the breaks in life
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6
as in escape
the act or an instance of getting free from danger or confinement
a desperate break from that hellhole
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Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of break
Ruth Margalit, New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2025
His four touchdowns broke San Jose State’s single-game record of three TD catches in a game, set nearly 50 years ago.
—Aaron Johnson, Mercury News, 13 Oct. 2025
Maureen Lee Lenker, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Oct. 2025
Summer is a popular time to visit Putney, when the Green Mountains are a verdant emerald hue, and students have gone home for break.
—Megan Margulies, Travel + Leisure, 11 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for break
Verb
We were crushed, humiliated, and broken, after our city was destroyed, occupied and erased from existence.
—Ruth Margalit, New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2025
His four touchdowns broke San Jose State’s single-game record of three TD catches in a game, set nearly 50 years ago.
—Aaron Johnson, Mercury News, 13 Oct. 2025
Noun
Judah The movie version of Laura is very much single, still nursing the heartache of her break-up with fellow journalist Ben (David Ajala), who is also on the cruise.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Oct. 2025
Summer is a popular time to visit Putney, when the Green Mountains are a verdant emerald hue, and students have gone home for break.
—Megan Margulies, Travel + Leisure, 11 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for break
Recent Examples of Synonyms for break
Verb
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The results reinforce what many pediatric specialists have long suspected—that too much screen exposure in early childhood may disrupt normal brain development.—
Daniella Gray,
MSNBC Newsweek,
13 Oct. 2025
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Unlike antifa, the Proud Boys actually did something that disrupted the United States federal government and threatened to derail the peaceful transfer of power.—
Sal Rodriguez,
Oc Register,
13 Oct. 2025
Verb
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But her six-figure salary didn’t stop her from using the Foundation as her personal piggy bank, records show.—
Michelle Marchante,
Miami Herald,
12 Oct. 2025
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Witkoff, Rubio, and Kushner then streamlined the proposal to a two-phase structure—first, a ceasefire and exchange of hostages and prisoners to stop the fighting; second, a framework for Gaza's future, including disarmament and a technocratic transitional government.—
Eric Cortellessa,
Time,
11 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Now, many employers are looking to harness the power of AI—initially for mundane and repetitive tasks and eventually for more complicated jobs—to reduce the need to maintain the same level of human staffers on their payrolls.—
Jason Del Rey,
Fortune,
15 Oct. 2025
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And drivers can reduce the risk of their cars being hit.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
15 Oct. 2025
Verb
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No, Lindsey did not decipher a few revealing tarot cards or see the future inside a crystal ball.—
Andy Greder,
Twin Cities,
12 Oct. 2025
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The iPhone also has the ability to decipher what objects, people or pets are in photographs taken by users.—
Lora Kolodny,
CNBC,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Sales can resume after a judge paused the Ohio governor's ban on THC gummies and beverages.—
Katie Wiseman,
IndyStar,
14 Oct. 2025
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Colbert paused for a quick beat.—
James Hibberd,
HollywoodReporter,
14 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Also running for mayor in this year’s election are Mike Hilborn, who owns a snow-plowing and power-washing company, and Adam Dullinger, a mechanical engineer.—
Alex Derosier,
Twin Cities,
15 Oct. 2025
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At the same time, Skattebo, the battering ram personified, pushes and plows through defenders, injecting energy into the Giants and their fans.—
Charlotte Carroll,
New York Times,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Two of Beane’s top free-agent signings, defensive end Michael Hoecht and defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi, are returning from six-game suspensions for violating the NFL’s performance-enhancing drugs policy.—
Tim Graham,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025
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The judge ruled that arresting and deporting non-citizen students for such reasons violated the First Amendment.—
Chad de Guzman,
Time,
15 Oct. 2025
Verb
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From tackling housing crises on Earth to building shelters on the moon, Charlotte shows how robotics and 3D printing can work together to solve real problems.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
12 Oct. 2025
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Simply put, there are complex problems that cannot be solved by classical computers, such as simulating molecules for drug discovery and materials science and optimizing large-scale systems in finance and logistics.—
Jason Ma,
Fortune,
12 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Break.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/break. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025.
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