breakout

noun break·out \ ˈbrāk-ˌau̇t \

Definition of breakout

1 :a violent or forceful break from a restraining condition or situation; especially :a military attack to break from encirclement

2 :an eruption or inflammation of the skin

Because stress can throw your hormones out of balance, it can make normal sebaceous glands produce oil at an increased rate, causing breakouts.
—Harper's Bazaar

See breakout defined for English-language learners

Examples of breakout in a Sentence

the captives had been planning to stage a breakout at the next change in shift for the guards

Recent Examples of breakout from the Web

Pirri had a breakout season for the Panthers in 2014-15 after Florida gave up a third and fifth-round pick to Chicago before the 2014 deadline.

— george richards, miamiherald, "Look who’s back with the Florida Panthers: It’s Brandon Pirri," 29 Aug. 2017
Argo senior Mateusz Bartyczak had a breakout season last year and is shaping up to be one of the area's top forwards this season.

— steve millar, Daily Southtown, "Local roundup: Mateusz Bartyczak, Argo show who's No. 1 in boys soccer," 22 Aug. 2017
The 5-foot-11-inch, 177-pound senior fullback had a breakout junior season, running for 1,428 yards and 18 TDs.

— josh cook, The Courier-Journal, "High school football previews | Collins, North Oldham, Shelby, Spencer," 15 Aug. 2017
During an interview with Variety's Remote Controlled podcast, the creators of HBO's breakout sci-fi drama offered a few hints about what's to come.

— emma dibdin, Harper's BAZAAR, "Westworld Creators Tease An "Ambitious" Season Two," 5 July 2017
At 16, Lorde won over pop fans with her moody lyrics and pop sound on the breakout album Pure Heroine.

— kelsi trinidad, The Cut, "See Lorde’s Style Evolution From Goth to Givenchy," 5 July 2017
Weeks earlier, during a breakout run to the Wimbledon semifinals, Alexandra Stevenson had to face queries on the stunning news that she had been fathered by the basketball legend Julius Erving.

— harvey araton, New York Times, "At Wimbledon, Venus Williams’s Poker Face Is Contorted by Emotion," 3 July 2017
Smith has learned from his father, learned last year from another top-20 pick at tight end in O.J. Howard and is now in line for a breakout sophomore season with the Crimson Tide.

— matt zenitz, AL.com, "Promising Alabama tight end following in father's footsteps," 3 July 2017
While there’s seemingly never been more social media stars, Ryan was one of the original YouTube breakouts.

— derek lawrence, EW.com, "Watch the late Stevie Ryan's most notable YouTube videos," 3 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'breakout.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of breakout

1820

breakout Synonyms

Synonyms

break, escape, bunk [British], flight, getaway, lam, rout, slip

Related Words

jailbreak; deliverance, liberation, redemption, release, rescue, salvation; close call, close shave, near miss

Near Antonyms

captivity, confinement, immurement, imprisonment, incarceration, internment; custody, detention, hold, holding, retention; endangerment, hazard, imperilment, jeopardy, peril, risk, trouble

breakout

adjective

Definition of breakout

:being or relating to a sudden or smashing success especially in comparison to previous efforts

a breakout book

See breakout defined for English-language learners

Examples of breakout in a Sentence

The company had a breakout year last year, tripling its profits from the previous year.

Recent Examples of breakout from the Web

With smart marketing, Nyoni's bold fusion of folklore, social comment, magical realism and her own family heritage could even translate into breakout word-of-mouth success akin to the tonally similar Beasts of the Southern Wild.

— stephen dalton, The Hollywood Reporter, "'I Am Not a Witch': Film Review | Cannes 2017," 25 May 2017

First Known Use of breakout

1960

break out

verb

Definition of break out

intransitive verb

1 :to develop or emerge with suddenness or force

fire broke out

a riot broke out

2 a :to become covered

break out in a sweat

b :to become affected with an eruption or inflammation of the skin

break out in hives

his face broke out with acne

3 :to make a break from a restraining condition or situation

broke out of a slump

broke out of jail

transitive verb

1 a :to make ready for action or use

break out the tents and make camp

b :to produce for consumption

break out a bottle of champagne

2 :to display flying and unfurled

3 :to separate from a mass of data

break out newsstand sales

See break out defined for kids

Examples of break out in a Sentence

in the wake of news reports of deaths from the flu, panic broke out, and there was a mad rush for flu shots

First Known Use of break out

before 12th century

break out Synonyms

Synonyms

blaze (up), erupt, burst (forth), explode, flame, flare (up)

Related Words

rocket, skyrocket; balloon, burgeon (also bourgeon), mount, multiply, mushroom, proliferate, snowball, swell, wax; blow up, detonate, touch off

BREAKOUT Defined for English Language Learners

breakout

noun

Definition of breakout for English Language Learners

: an escape from a prison, jail, etc.

breakout

adjective

Definition of breakout for English Language Learners

: having, causing, or marked by sudden and great success that comes usually after a time without much success

Medical Dictionary

breakout

noun break·out \ ˈbrā-ˌkau̇t \

medical Definition of breakout

:an eruption or inflammation of the skin

This is especially true for those who have acne and are desperate to stop breakouts without taking prescription antibiotics …
—Stacie Stukin, The Los Angeles Times, 9 July 2007

Because stress can throw your hormones out of balance, it can make normal sebaceous glands produce oil at an increased rate, causing breakouts.
—Harper's Bazaar, May 1981