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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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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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
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Recent Examples of break
Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 22 June 2026
Enough to spend $1 million a day for 2,700 years without going broke.
—The Week Us, TheWeek, 22 June 2026
Jon MacHota, New York Times, 23 June 2026
More often, momentum breaks when credibility, engagement and follow-through stop reinforcing one another.
—David Steifman, Forbes.com, 23 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for break
Verb
Universal is reportedly trying to commission a movie in the next six months before the rights to the property expire, according to Deadline, which broke the news of the new film.
—Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 22 June 2026
Enough to spend $1 million a day for 2,700 years without going broke.
—The Week Us, TheWeek, 22 June 2026
Noun
Prescott plans on getting teammates together during the break before training camp, as he’s done in previous offseasons.
—Jon MacHota, New York Times, 23 June 2026
More often, momentum breaks when credibility, engagement and follow-through stop reinforcing one another.
—David Steifman, Forbes.com, 23 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for break
Recent Examples of Synonyms for break
Verb
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The fires also disrupted travel across parts of Miami-Dade County.—
Steve Maugeri,
CBS News,
22 June 2026
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Poor nutrition, lack of physical activity and health conditions like metabolic bone disease can disrupt bone remodeling, leading to weaker bones over time.—
Priya Bhardwaj,
The Conversation,
22 June 2026
Verb
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Chisholm scored on Jose Caballero's RBI groundout in the fourth inning before hitting a two-run homer in the sixth as New York ended a three-game losing streak and stopped Detroit's four-game winning streak.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
24 June 2026
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Disneyland officials said a cast member immediately stopped the ride.—
Dennis Romero,
NBC news,
24 June 2026
Verb
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New flyover ramps connecting to I-95 would also be built, while sound barriers would be installed along both sides of the corridor to help reduce traffic noise for nearby residents.—
Joan Murray,
CBS News,
23 June 2026
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The rich treatment balances strengthening plant proteins with nourishing rosehip and sweet almond oils to reduce breakage and replenish moisture.—
Christa Joanna Lee,
Allure,
23 June 2026
Verb
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One of the most exciting uses of AI has to be helping historians and archaeologists decipher previously indecipherable or untranslatable ancient texts.—
Jeremy Kahn,
Fortune,
23 June 2026
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As the inscription had been damaged, researchers couldn’t decipher whether this tablet had cursed four slaves or whether four slaves had cried out to the Egyptian gods and demi-heroes, who knows?—
Maria Mocerino,
Interesting Engineering,
20 June 2026
Verb
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These pauses in data center permitting and construction give communities time to consider how to define new laws and regulations about the facilities’ location, electricity use, water conservation and noise buffering.—
Rachel Mural,
Fortune,
21 June 2026
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But as Cooper's deadline for his name to be stripped from the building neared, the Justice Department asked the federal appeals court in Washington to pause the district court's order.—
Joe Walsh,
CBS News,
20 June 2026
Verb
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In other words, someone or some entity would have to plow through the seemingly countless variables catalogued in the report and decide which would be included and which would be excluded.—
Dan Walters,
Mercury News,
23 June 2026
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Roads are not plowed, so owners and guests reach the property by snow cat or sled from the gate.—
David Caraccio,
Sacbee.com,
23 June 2026
Verb
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Accusing Israel of violating the ceasefire in Lebanon, Iran balked at attending talks planned Friday, the first since the Iranian and US presidents signed the 14-clause memorandum of understanding (MoU) earlier in the week.—
Mitchell McCluskey,
CNN Money,
21 June 2026
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The prior Minnesota Anti-SLAPP law required that the court make certain pre-trial factual findings which was held to violate the right to a jury trial.—
Jay Adkisson,
Forbes.com,
21 June 2026
Verb
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One of the oldest John Doe cases in America has been solved, with help from DNA evidence and forensic genetic genealogy, according to a team at FHD Forensics.—
JT Moodee Lockman,
CBS News,
19 June 2026
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More and more people are solving that exact problem by paring down instead of piling on.—
Ryan Brennan,
Charlotte Observer,
19 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Break.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/break. Accessed 25 Jun. 2026.
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