1
as in to disband
to cease to exist or cause to cease to exist as a group or organization
the band broke up when their arguments over money grew too stressful
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2
as in to stop
to come to an end
the meeting broke up when all the business for the day had been completed
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3
as in to divide
to set or force apart
he broke up the rocks in the old stone wall with a crowbar, sending them tumbling to the ground
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4
as in to crack
to yield to mental or emotional stress
the sort of person who would be among the first to break up in a prisoner of war camp
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5
as in to cease
to bring (as an action or operation) to an immediate end
police arrived at the scene and immediately broke up the fracas
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6
as in to disrupt
to cause to separate into pieces usually suddenly or forcibly
break up the feta cheese and spread it over the salad
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7
as in to laugh
to show mirth with an explosive vocal sound
if you break up during the skit, the audience will know that you're in on the joke
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as in split
the act or process of a whole separating into two or more parts or pieces
the breakup of the Soviet Union and the collapse of communism pretty much signaled the end of the Cold War
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of break up
Emma Banks, InStyle, 27 Feb. 2026
Cezanne, for example, wanted to repaint Poussin, but from nature, and, in so doing, broke up the canvas’s optical field into hot colors that advanced and cold colors that receded.
—Literary Hub, 27 Feb. 2026
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 27 Feb. 2026
These final four episodes packed in a wedding, a gut-wrenching death, a breakup and a mystery that should keep the fandom theorizing for months.
—Hanna Wickes, Kansas City Star, 26 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for break up
Verb
Following their meet-cute, Pink and Hart broke up in 2003, reconnected in 2004, and got engaged in 2005.
—Emma Banks, InStyle, 27 Feb. 2026
Cezanne, for example, wanted to repaint Poussin, but from nature, and, in so doing, broke up the canvas’s optical field into hot colors that advanced and cold colors that receded.
—Literary Hub, 27 Feb. 2026
Noun
To me, that meant that Colin had no agency in the breakup of the relationship.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 27 Feb. 2026
These final four episodes packed in a wedding, a gut-wrenching death, a breakup and a mystery that should keep the fandom theorizing for months.
—Hanna Wickes, Kansas City Star, 26 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for break up
Recent Examples of Synonyms for break up
Verb
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The next year, Nixon disbanded Johnson’s commission and set up his own, entirely partisan, commission consisting of campaign donors and other supporters.—
Jill Lepore,
New Yorker,
2 Mar. 2026
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More recently, the Center established a new senior advisory committee after disbanding the former one last April.—
Maura Fox,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
1 Mar. 2026
Verb
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After Elmarko Jackson’s flagrant foul stopping a dunk in transition — the play was called a common foul but quickly upgraded to a flagrant-one — the Jayhawks and Sun Devils came together.—
Shreyas Laddha,
Kansas City Star,
4 Mar. 2026
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The administration has tried everything in its toolbox to stop it, based on not data or studies or anything much beyond rich-old-man pique.—
Christopher Bonanos,
Curbed,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Party strategists in both camps acknowledge that a prolonged and bitter runoff could leave Republicans divided heading into the fall.—
Nik Popli,
Time,
4 Mar. 2026
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Committee members were split on proposals to close schools — divided between the belief that campuses with few students burden staff and provide limited resources, and the worry that combining small schools will create overcrowding, split communities and harm students.—
Molly Gibbs,
Mercury News,
4 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Gwen then cracks a joke about firing Del Rio's character.—
Wesley Stenzel,
Entertainment Weekly,
27 Feb. 2026
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Inside the pile of rocks at Delray Beach’s Anchor Park, there are hundreds of seashells, but most are broken, cracked, smashed or otherwise beaten up.—
Lois K. Solomon,
Sun Sentinel,
27 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Because of Fertitta’s club ownership, Caesars will likely cease Rockets bets across its holdings if it is sold to Fertitta Entertainment—a notable loss of a competitive NBA team from its online and land-based sportsbook menus.—
Dan Bernstein,
Sportico.com,
2 Mar. 2026
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Once the escort had ceased, Rapo reportedly approached Karzoun in front of Señor Pepe’s restaurant and caused the injuries that would ultimately lead to his death, the lawsuit states.—
Justin Muszynski,
Hartford Courant,
2 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Just one week ago, a report hypothesizing on how AI could disrupt the economy sent the Dow tumbling by more than 800 points.—
John Towfighi,
CNN Money,
3 Mar. 2026
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Maneuvering and hypersonic considerations Iran’s reported hypersonic designs, like the Fattah missile, focus less on speed and more on terminal maneuvering to disrupt tracking.—
Sujita Sinha,
Interesting Engineering,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Some of the men laughed at the comment, which sparked criticism online, especially since many of them are close with players on the women's hockey team.—
Allison DeGrushe,
Entertainment Weekly,
28 Feb. 2026
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And then there’s Rayquan Minor, who says making people laugh is his specialty.—
Tess Kenny,
Chicago Tribune,
28 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Partisan split Democrats in the Senate race were sharply critical.—
Joseph Morton,
Dallas Morning News,
28 Feb. 2026
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The effect of that was that the nation went into the start of the conflict split about it.—
Anthony Salvanto,
CBS News,
28 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Break up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/break%20up. Accessed 6 Mar. 2026.
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