breaking in

verb

present participle of break in
1
as in invading
to enter a house or building by force usually with illegal intent the burglars broke in by smashing a window

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in interrupting
to cause a disruption in a conversation or discussion he rudely broke in to drop the names of several celebrities that he had met

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 breaking in Just recently, a client came to us because their onboarding and user data pipeline kept breaking in ways their users could feel. — Dan Haiem, Forbes.com, 27 May 2026 Not a week goes by without news of a high-profile auction breaking in Publishers Weekly. — Literary Hub, 28 Apr. 2026 Other teams breaking in transfer quarterbacks are Illinois (Katin Houser, East Carolina), Nebraska (Anthony Colandrea, UNLV), Northwestern (Aidan Chiles, Michigan State), Penn State (Rocco Becht, Iowa State) and Wisconsin (Colton Joseph, Old Dominion). — Eric Olson, Chicago Tribune, 27 Apr. 2026 The building had kept deteriorating over the course of time, with people continually breaking in, Olson said. — Chilekasi Adele, CBS News, 13 Apr. 2026 If the matter-antimatter asymmetry arose due to a breaking of a certain cosmic symmetry at a higher energy, then restoring the symmetry could lead to that symmetry re-breaking in a different fashion. — Big Think, 5 Mar. 2026 Wild forward Nico Sturm has been breaking in his Team Germany skates at a few Minnesota practices, and joked about hiding his on-ice moves from NHL teammates that may be foes in Italy. — Jess Myers, Twin Cities, 5 Feb. 2026 Dark selvedge blue has a professional and polished edge that simultaneously conjures vintage workwear, breaking in over time. — Rosie Jarman, Vogue, 27 Jan. 2026 Frightened by the thought of breaking in your jeans? — Stacia Datskovska, Footwear News, 21 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for breaking in
  1. invading
  2. interrupting
  3. robbing
  4. cutting in
Verb
  • What's Ivy's message to those who oppose biological males invading Canadian women's golf?
    — Joe Kinsey OutKick, FOXNews.com, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Yet, in contending with the invading species, Denise is fashioned into a female action hero more in keeping with the epoch of director Quentin Tarantino than with that of President Ronald Reagan.
    — Peter Tonguette, The Washington Examiner, 22 Aug. 2026
Definition of invading
Verb
  • Gamers can quickly capture screenshots of 2D and 3D games on their primary monitor without interrupting the action.
    — Jordan Minor, PC Magazine, 26 Aug. 2026
  • Cancer June 21 – July 22 The work request interrupting your private time may need a firmer boundary today.
    — Tarot.com, Chicago Tribune, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of interrupting
Verb
  • The backlash against hyperscale data centers has converted both Democrats and Republicans into AI skeptics, warning that the industry’s rise risks robbing communities of autonomy.
    — David Weigel, semafor.com, 26 Aug. 2026
  • His grand-slam-robbing catch was also flagged by the league as the play of the week.
    — Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of robbing
Verb
  • As with the Pattern One, the grip ended in a round top nut, which secured the rat-tail tang to the grip, though the fitting was now done by cutting off the tang to length and cutting in the screw to take the nut.
    — David Szondy August 30, New Atlas, 30 Aug. 2026
  • Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is a constant threat cutting in from the left, and if Dembélé features, he will be given the freedom to drift and find pockets of space centrally.
    — Dean Jones, New York Times, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of cutting in

Browse Nearby Words

breaking free
breaking in
breaking off
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Breaking in.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/breaking%20in. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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