1
as in disbanding
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in ending
to come to an end
the meeting broke up when all the business for the day had been completed
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in dividing
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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in losing it
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 stopping
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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
6
as in disrupting
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 laughing
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of breaking up
In the series, Missal's character gets involved with married professor Oliver after breaking up with her boyfriend, Evan.
—
Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 20 Jan. 2026
Summer House stars Amanda Batula and Kyle Cooke are breaking up.
—Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 19 Jan. 2026
Kendricks wound up making the game-saving play by breaking up the fourth-down pass to Goedert.
—Chris Biderman, Sacbee.com, 12 Jan. 2026
Officials say the tornado traveled a little more than 1 mile for seven minutes before breaking up.
—Dan Raby, CBS News, 12 Jan. 2026
On the season, Frederique has allowed 17 catches on 30 targets against for 299 yards and one touchdown while breaking up three passes.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 6 Jan. 2026
Hamilton collided with teammate Alohi Gilman while breaking up an Aaron Rodgers pass intended for Calvin Austin III.
—Jeff Zrebiec, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2026
Starting an office romance has its perks, but breaking up brings a steep price.
—Emily Nix, Fortune, 9 Nov. 2025
Over time, Moore became suspicious of Wuornos, eventually breaking up with her and moving back to Ohio.
—Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Oct. 2025
Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 20 Jan. 2026
Summer House stars Amanda Batula and Kyle Cooke are breaking up.
—Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 19 Jan. 2026
Kendricks wound up making the game-saving play by breaking up the fourth-down pass to Goedert.
—Chris Biderman, Sacbee.com, 12 Jan. 2026
Officials say the tornado traveled a little more than 1 mile for seven minutes before breaking up.
—Dan Raby, CBS News, 12 Jan. 2026
On the season, Frederique has allowed 17 catches on 30 targets against for 299 yards and one touchdown while breaking up three passes.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 6 Jan. 2026
Hamilton collided with teammate Alohi Gilman while breaking up an Aaron Rodgers pass intended for Calvin Austin III.
—Jeff Zrebiec, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2026
Starting an office romance has its perks, but breaking up brings a steep price.
—Emily Nix, Fortune, 9 Nov. 2025
Over time, Moore became suspicious of Wuornos, eventually breaking up with her and moving back to Ohio.
—Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for breaking up
Verb
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The nonprofit institution that provided significant funding for PBS and NPR is disbanding after nearly 60 years in operation.—
Jenna Prestininzi,
Freep.com,
6 Jan. 2026
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The American Independence Party of George Wallace did a little better in 1968, carrying five states and 46 electoral votes before disbanding nationally, even though a California affiliate remains as a minor party.—
Thomas Elias,
Mercury News,
30 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Burlington prevailed, 57-54, in a tough road environment against Winchester, ending their conference rival’s undefeated season.—
Justin Barrasso,
Boston Herald,
21 Jan. 2026
-
The Chargers’ second consecutive 11-win season came without the aid of their two top tackles, Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater, who suffered season-ending injuries that forced Harbaugh and Roman to field a patchwork offensive line for most of the season, but especially in the final weeks.—
Elliott Teaford,
Oc Register,
21 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The debate within the Democratic coalition is already bigger and louder, dividing moderates in swing states from progressives elated by Mamdani's rocket to victory in the nation's largest city.—
Susan Page,
USA Today,
12 Jan. 2026
-
One was a real human blastocysts, which contain about 100 to 200 rapidly dividing cells.—
Rupendra Brahambhatt,
Interesting Engineering,
10 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Instead of stopping to help the victim, the driver continued in an unknown direction.—
Dean Fioresi,
CBS News,
21 Jan. 2026
-
The last time Netflix disclosed subscriber figures, at the end of 2024, the streamer counted more than 300 million global subscribers, far ahead of rivals like Disney+, before stopping subscriber disclosures altogether.—
Allie Canal,
NBC news,
20 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Airlines canceled hundreds of flights, disrupting plans for thousands of travelers during a busy holiday weekend and in a region that experts say is among the most popular for travelers this time of year.—
Greg Iacurci,
CNBC,
10 Jan. 2026
-
One woman, Trish, told CBS News the fear was already disrupting daily life amid an influx of 2,000 federal law enforcement members in the Twin Cities metro area.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Captain Serious started laughing, went out for yet another lap and started egging on the fans like a pro wrestler.—
Mark Lazerus,
New York Times,
20 Jan. 2026
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The two were also seen laughing and dancing together.—
Zoey Lyttle,
PEOPLE,
20 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Sanae Takaichi is looking to boost her grip on power, dissolving the government at the end of the month.—
Ellie Austin,
Fortune,
14 Jan. 2026
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To study how methyl mercury gets deposited, the researchers take samples of lichens, dissolving them in nitric acid to extract mercury and other metals.—
Daniella Garcia Almeida,
Mercury News,
13 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Since that was expiring, voters in November 2024 replaced it with Measure A, a half-cent sales tax for the same purpose.—
Steve Scauzillo,
Daily News,
17 Jan. 2026
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Republicans said the expansions from the pandemic era went too far and tried to persuade Democrats to fund a temporary spending bill that didn't address the expiring ACA subsidies, with promises of discussing ways to continue the subsidies later.—
Mary Kekatos,
ABC News,
14 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Breaking up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/breaking%20up. Accessed 22 Jan. 2026.
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