housebreaking

1 of 2

noun

house·​break·​ing ˈhau̇s-ˌbrā-kiŋ 

: an act of breaking open and entering the dwelling house of another with a felonious purpose

housebreaker

ˈhau̇s-ˌbrā-kər 

noun

housebreaking

2 of 2

present participle of housebreak

Examples of housebreaking in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Last week, the suspects were returned to Grenada, where they were all charged with two counts of capital murder, escaping lawful custody, housebreaking, robbery and two counts of kidnapping. — Chris Eberhart, Fox News, 15 Mar. 2024

The three inmates were also charged with escaping lawful custody, housebreaking, robbery, and two counts of kidnapping. — Marlene Lenthang, NBC News, 8 Mar. 2024

Ron Mitchell, a 30-year-old sailor; Atiba Stanislaus, a 25-year-old farmer; and Trevon Robertson, a 23-year-old unemployed man, were charged with capital murder, escaping lawful custody, housebreaking, robbery and kidnapping. — CBS News, 8 Mar. 2024

The three suspects have also been charged with escaping lawful custody, housebreaking, robbery and kidnapping. — Michael Rios, CNN, 8 Mar. 2024

Sometimes armed with rifles, the settlers intermittently engage in housebreaking, sheep stealing and vandalism. — Steven Erlanger Sergey Ponomarev, New York Times, 25 Feb. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1607, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for housebreaking

• merrymaking
• moneymaking
• overtaking
• papermaking
• undertaking
• aching
• baking
• braking
• breaking
• caking
• faking
• flaking

Kids Definition

housebreaking

noun

house·​break·​ing -ˌbrā-kiŋ 

: the act of breaking into a person's house with the intention of committing a crime

housebreaker

-kər 

noun

Legal Definition

housebreaking

noun

house·​break·​ing ˈhau̇s-ˌbrā-kiŋ 

: the act of breaking into and entering the dwelling house of another for the purpose of committing a felony

housebreaker noun