Synonyms of breaks
-
as in disrupts 
-
as in stops
-
as in reduces
-
as in deciphers
-
as in pauses
-
as in plows
-
as in violates
-
as in solves
-
as in damages
-
as in dies
-
as in retreats
-
as in wears
-
as in circulates
-
as in bankrupts
-
as in begins
-
as in veers
-
as in lowers
-
as in exceeds
-
as in surfaces
-
as in lulls
-
as in vacations
-
as in gaps
-
as in opportunities
-
as in accidents
-
as in escapes
-
Example Sentences
-
Entries Near
1
as in disrupts
to cause to separate into pieces usually suddenly or forcibly
hated telling her that I had broken her favorite glass vase
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stops
to bring (as an action or operation) to an immediate end
the final vote broke the deadlock
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in reduces
to bring to a lower grade or rank
the captain was broken to lieutenant commander for disobeying a direct order from his group commander
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in deciphers
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in pauses
to come to a temporary halt in one's activity
she broke from her ruminations to find that it was already dinnertime
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
6
7
as in violates
to fail to keep
had to confess that he had broken his promise not to share their conversation with anyone
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
8
as in solves
to find an answer for through reasoning
Professor Bates broke the problem when she realized that it was possible to synthesize the necessary compounds
Synonyms & Similar Words
9
as in damages
to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of
I broke a tooth on the hard candy
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
10
as in dies
to stop functioning
after working for 30 years, the pump simply broke one day
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
11
as in retreats
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
12
as in wears
to use up all the physical energy of
the trek up the mountain just about broke me
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
13
as in circulates
to become known
as soon as the scandal broke, the CEO fled the country
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
14
as in bankrupts
to cause to lose one's fortune and become unable to pay one's debts
another bad investment could break him
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
15
as in begins
to come into existence
the crisis had passed, and a new day was breaking
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
16
as in veers
to depart abruptly from a straight line or course
the running back broke to his left before running out of bounds
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
17
as in lowers
to diminish the price or value of
distressing economic news that will break many energy stocks
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
18
as in exceeds
to go beyond the limit of
a menu with prices that is likely to break the budgets of all but the wealthiest of diners
Synonyms & Similar Words
1
as in lulls
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in vacations
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in gaps
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
4
5
as in accidents
an unexpected benefit or advantage resulting from the uncertain course of events
a guy who just seems to get all the breaks in life
Synonyms & Similar Words
6
as in escapes
the act or an instance of getting free from danger or confinement
a desperate break from that hellhole
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of breaks
Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 6 Sep. 2025
The campaign breaks Thursday in tandem with the retail drop of the Passepartout collection for fall 2025, strong on Lurex jersey dresses and sweaters with a labyrinth motif that gives an animal-print vibe.
—Miles Socha, Footwear News, 4 Sep. 2025
Nash-Betts breaks the who's who down for us.
—Lauren Huff, Entertainment Weekly, 4 Sep. 2025
Wild animal breaks into California home, helps himself to multiple meals.
—FOXNews.com, 4 Sep. 2025
This fragmentation breaks Ethereum’s original composability and interoperability, as DEXs on one layer-2 cannot seamlessly interact with others, reducing the ability of decentralized applications (DApps) to operate seamlessly across the Ethereum ecosystem.
—Sean Lee, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
If 10-year-old Christian Savitskie breaks a leg, his dad could lose his job.
—Darcie Moran, Freep.com, 2 Sep. 2025
The Annunciation Church attack breaks a boundary - namely, that children should be spared from society's typical ills.
—Marc Ramirez, USA Today, 29 Aug. 2025
An amendment was tabled by Texas House Republican Steve Toth, and approved, raising the fine on any institution that breaks the law to an initial $25,000 followed by $125,000 for any additional breaches.
—James Bickerton, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Aug. 2025
Samantha Dewalt, Fortune, 12 Sep. 2025
Even the frat boys next door got involved, doting on Stella and holding her during study breaks.
—Lydia Patrick, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 Sep. 2025
For instance, guests can book three-night mountain stays with access to sporting events, followed by two-night city breaks focused on nonsporting events like dinners and tours in Venice and Milan.
—Tiana Attride, AFAR Media, 12 Sep. 2025
Ursa Major breaks ground in Colorado.
—Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 12 Sep. 2025
With this certification program, employees can take short learning breaks and access ready-to-apply AI content on demand, instantly increasing their AI acumen.
—Malana Vantyler, USA Today, 11 Sep. 2025
When such breaks result in a piece of the bone slipping out of place, the fracture is considered displaced.
—Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
Zarutska spent days painting upstairs in one family’s home, taking breaks to share stories about life in Ukraine.
—Peter D'abrosca , Stepheny Price , Emma Bussey, FOXNews.com, 11 Sep. 2025
Potential breaks for employers Other changes that would allow workers to set aside more of their income on a pre-tax basis in flexible spending accounts for care expenses, from $5,000 to $7,500, are also likely to provide the largest benefits to higher income workers.
—David Lightman, Sacbee.com, 5 Sep. 2025
Verb
Virgo has Steal Away begin as a feminist drama that eventually breaks conventions by morphing into something of a horror film, with even a pinch of the supernatural.
—Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 6 Sep. 2025
The campaign breaks Thursday in tandem with the retail drop of the Passepartout collection for fall 2025, strong on Lurex jersey dresses and sweaters with a labyrinth motif that gives an animal-print vibe.
—Miles Socha, Footwear News, 4 Sep. 2025
Nash-Betts breaks the who's who down for us.
—Lauren Huff, Entertainment Weekly, 4 Sep. 2025
Wild animal breaks into California home, helps himself to multiple meals.
—FOXNews.com, 4 Sep. 2025
This fragmentation breaks Ethereum’s original composability and interoperability, as DEXs on one layer-2 cannot seamlessly interact with others, reducing the ability of decentralized applications (DApps) to operate seamlessly across the Ethereum ecosystem.
—Sean Lee, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
If 10-year-old Christian Savitskie breaks a leg, his dad could lose his job.
—Darcie Moran, Freep.com, 2 Sep. 2025
The Annunciation Church attack breaks a boundary - namely, that children should be spared from society's typical ills.
—Marc Ramirez, USA Today, 29 Aug. 2025
An amendment was tabled by Texas House Republican Steve Toth, and approved, raising the fine on any institution that breaks the law to an initial $25,000 followed by $125,000 for any additional breaches.
—James Bickerton, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Aug. 2025
Noun
Those who pause for breaks, meditate, do yoga, get enough sleep, build a support network and ask for help perform at a higher level.
—Samantha Dewalt, Fortune, 12 Sep. 2025
Even the frat boys next door got involved, doting on Stella and holding her during study breaks.
—Lydia Patrick, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 Sep. 2025
For instance, guests can book three-night mountain stays with access to sporting events, followed by two-night city breaks focused on nonsporting events like dinners and tours in Venice and Milan.
—Tiana Attride, AFAR Media, 12 Sep. 2025
Ursa Major breaks ground in Colorado.
—Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 12 Sep. 2025
With this certification program, employees can take short learning breaks and access ready-to-apply AI content on demand, instantly increasing their AI acumen.
—Malana Vantyler, USA Today, 11 Sep. 2025
When such breaks result in a piece of the bone slipping out of place, the fracture is considered displaced.
—Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
Zarutska spent days painting upstairs in one family’s home, taking breaks to share stories about life in Ukraine.
—Peter D'abrosca , Stepheny Price , Emma Bussey, FOXNews.com, 11 Sep. 2025
Potential breaks for employers Other changes that would allow workers to set aside more of their income on a pre-tax basis in flexible spending accounts for care expenses, from $5,000 to $7,500, are also likely to provide the largest benefits to higher income workers.
—David Lightman, Sacbee.com, 5 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for breaks
Verb
-
Incomplete or inconsistent data disrupts workflows and triggers irrelevant follow-ups.—
Al Sefati,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
-
And there’s the impact of climate change itself, which disrupts seasonal temperature change routines.—
Tim McDonnell,
semafor.com,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
When policy, innovation, and business insight align, CCU stops being a piece of green rhetoric and becomes good business.—
Peter Bendor-Samuel,
Forbes.com,
12 Sep. 2025
-
The buck stops with the humans.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
This not only reinforces clarity, but also reduces the reliance on employees having to scribble notes word for word to decode later.—
Dr. Diane Hamilton,
Forbes.com,
6 Sep. 2025
-
But prorating three years of player profits down to 12 months, as UEFA’s rule does, reduces the immediate efficacy of successful trading in the market, the very strategy that poorer clubs increasingly rely on to climb the ladder.—
Chris Weatherspoon,
New York Times,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
My body no longer deciphers its signals correctly.—
Alaa Alqaisi
August 13,
Literary Hub,
13 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Lizzo pauses before declining to answer.—
Allison P. Davis,
Vulture,
8 Sep. 2025
-
Fired from elite law firm Tinley Britt after an argument with his boss (John Slattery), Rudy barely pauses for breath before launching into righteous combat.—
Graham Hillard,
The Washington Examiner,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
What Lies Ahead There is a rapidly closing window to ensure gender parity in leadership as the AI revolution plows forward.—
Cynthia Pong,
Forbes.com,
24 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Since Missouri vanity plates have to follow the state obscenity law, a court would need to find that the state law violates the First Amendment.—
Eleanor Nash,
Kansas City Star,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Further, the letter warned that Unwrapped violates Spotify's developer policy, which bans using the Spotify platform or any Spotify content to build machine learning or AI models.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Tune in for short episodes every Wednesday and Saturday as Grumpy answers reader questions, solves seasonal conundrums, and provides need-to-know advice for gardeners with his very Grumpy sense of humor.—
Steve Bender,
Southern Living,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Your product solves a real problem.—
Jodie Cook,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Breaks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/breaks. Accessed 14 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share