BREAKING UP Synonyms: 271 Similar and Opposite Words

breaking up

verb

present participle of break up

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

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as in ending

to come to an end the meeting broke up when all the business for the day had been completed

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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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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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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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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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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

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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 up Frilingos recommends breaking up your trips to see all 100 items and checking out the Atlanta History Center's digital guide to see the exhibit's themes. —

Emily McLeod, CBS News, 18 May 2026 On a balcony, this looks like breaking up the lineup by alternating hanging planters with those on the ground. —

Nicole Kliest, Vogue, 20 Apr. 2026 The show opens with a couple, Dan (Mike Mitchell) and Dana (Plaza), breaking up and their cat, Kevin (Jason Schwartzman), deciding he’s done with both humans and will find his own way in the world. —

Stuart Miller, Los Angeles Times, 20 Apr. 2026 Leading up to rehab, post-hysterectomy and just before officially breaking up with Antonoff, Dunham reconnected with a childhood boyfriend, Nick. —

Caitlin Huston, HollywoodReporter, 14 Apr. 2026 Demonstrations took place in several cities across Israel over the weekend, with police breaking up a large gathering in Tel Aviv. —

Npr Staff, NPR, 5 Apr. 2026 Images taken by Reuters show Israeli security forces breaking up the demonstrations in the city’s Habima Square. —

Sophie Tanno, CNN Money, 29 Mar. 2026 The room begins to feel fragmented, with too many edges breaking up the sightline. —

Angelika Pokovba, Martha Stewart, 3 Mar. 2026 Meanwhile, in the early 1900s, people feared broadcast radio would wrinkle their skin, dry up the sky, and even cause flooding by breaking up clouds. —

Tim Brinkhof, Big Think, 3 Mar. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for breaking up

Verb

Facing that, disbanding a unit is a rational response.

— Richard Winton, Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2026
Joined by bassist David Barbe and drummer Malcolm Travis, the group released two albums and toured regularly before disbanding amicably in 1995.

— Jonathan Cohen, SPIN, 5 May 2026