BREAKS Synonyms: 709 Similar and Opposite Words

breaks 1 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of break

as in disrupts

to cause to separate into pieces usually suddenly or forcibly hated telling her that I had broken her favorite glass vase

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as in stops

to bring (as an action or operation) to an immediate end the final vote broke the deadlock

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as in reduces

to bring to a lower grade or rank the captain was broken to lieutenant commander for disobeying a direct order from his group commander

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as in deciphers

to change (as a secret message) from code into ordinary language Alan Turing and the Bletchley Park mathematicians broke the Enigma code being used by the Nazis

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as in pauses

to come to a temporary halt in one's activity she broke from her ruminations to find that it was already dinnertime

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as in plows

to cut into and turn over the sod of (a piece of land) using a bladed implement farmers once broke fields with horse-drawn plows

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as in violates

to fail to keep had to confess that he had broken his promise not to share their conversation with anyone

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as in solves

to find an answer for through reasoning Professor Bates broke the problem when she realized that it was possible to synthesize the necessary compounds

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as in damages

to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of I broke a tooth on the hard candy

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as in dies

to stop functioning after working for 30 years, the pump simply broke one day

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starts (up)

as in retreats

to hasten away from something dangerous or frightening the herd of gazelles broke when they saw the lions racing toward them from the ridge above

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as in wears

to use up all the physical energy of the trek up the mountain just about broke me

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as in circulates

to become known as soon as the scandal broke, the CEO fled the country

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as in bankrupts

to cause to lose one's fortune and become unable to pay one's debts another bad investment could break him

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as in begins

to come into existence the crisis had passed, and a new day was breaking

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as in veers

to depart abruptly from a straight line or course the running back broke to his left before running out of bounds

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straightens

as in lowers

to diminish the price or value of distressing economic news that will break many energy stocks

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as in exceeds

to go beyond the limit of a menu with prices that is likely to break the budgets of all but the wealthiest of diners

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as in surfaces

to penetrate the surface (as of water) from below dolphins were breaking all around the boat

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breaks

2 of 2

noun

plural of break

as in lulls

a momentary halt in an activity there was a brief break after the first movement as the doors to the concert hall were opened and the latecomers were allowed in

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as in vacations

a period during which the usual routine of school or work is suspended most of the students at the boarding school are going home for Christmas break

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as in gaps

an open space in a barrier (as a wall or hedge) the rancher repaired the break in the fence where the horse had gotten through

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as in opportunities

a favorable combination of circumstances, time, and place in classic fashion, her big break came when, as an understudy, she took over for an ailing star

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as in accidents

an unexpected benefit or advantage resulting from the uncertain course of events a guy who just seems to get all the breaks in life

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as in escapes

the act or an instance of getting free from danger or confinement a desperate break from that hellhole

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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 breaks

Verb

Murray, with 128 yards and a touchdown, breaks Hall of Famer Jim Brown’s 56-year-old record. — Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026 Back at The Pynk, Uncle Clifford (Nicco Annan) dreams of expanding her empire while Roulette breaks the club’s cardinal rule to build hers. — Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 16 Oct. 2026 Managing Routine Processes From Memory One practice that breaks is running on memory. — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 15 Oct. 2026 Tommy breaks them out by using Vision as a battering ram, but Paladin is waiting outside to blast Vision with a shotgun full of adamantium rounds. — Tasha Robinson, Vulture, 14 Oct. 2026 That's a slightly different approach from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which breaks that broad area into two regions. — CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026 Samsara Eco develops enzymatic recycling technology that breaks polyester and nylon 6,6 into monomers, which can then be used to make new polymers. — Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 13 Oct. 2026 What happens if something breaks while the truck is moving at highway speed? — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 12 Oct. 2026 That rhythm breaks when Santosh, her lover and a fellow migrant worker, is killed in a truck accident while on duty in his booth. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 9 Oct. 2026

Noun

Beyond the breaks stood forests of giant kelp, each capable of growing as much as 50 centimeters a day. — Alec Luhn, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026 Some kids come into this life and catch all the breaks and start making money and going places and radiating confidence and functionality and the world opens right up to them. — George Saunders, New Yorker, 18 Oct. 2026 However, this is a far cry from earlier times when lawmakers met regularly, participated in spirited and substantive policy discussions, enjoyed informal dinners and even carpooled back home during congressional breaks. — John T. Shaw, Chicago Tribune, 18 Oct. 2026 Zhou said injuries are largely preventable through taking breaks, practicing proper lifting techniques and using an appropriate length rake. — Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 18 Oct. 2026 Daily Alerts Stay informed as soon as important news breaks around Washington DC and the entire world. — Washington Examiner, The Washington Examiner, 17 Oct. 2026 In 2024 and 2025, the breaks, the clutch hitting and the quality pitching went their way. — Ian Miller Outkick, FOXNews.com, 16 Oct. 2026 For him, the trick with the stomach being the setting for a majority of the movie was balancing the claustrophobic feeling of Jay’s plight with breaks from the cramped space. — Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 16 Oct. 2026 Attendees took breaks to unwind with premium wellness experiences that included massages from Sonar Mobile Spa, ear seeding from Solstice and red light therapy from Luma Dose. — Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 16 Oct. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for breaks

Verb

Introducing conscious thoughts actually disrupts this flow and slows down the process.

— Jesse Granger, New York Times, 23 Oct. 2026
The rare condition damages the spinal cord’s protective myelin sheath and disrupts nerve signals between the brain and body.

— Rod McGuirk, Los Angeles Times, 21 Oct. 2026

Definition of disrupts

Verb

Last week, when Ocasio-Cortez made three campaign stops for Michigan Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed, neither Democrat — and no audience members — brought up the topic of Gaza.

— David Weigel, semafor.com, 19 Oct. 2026
In January 2025, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch changed the department pursuit policy, barring cops from chasing after vehicles fleeing car stops unless a felony crime or a violent misdemeanor was committed.

— John Annese, New York Daily News, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of stops

Verb

This reduces the turbulence around the suspension and in the trailer’s wake, and lowers the aerodynamic drag.

— Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 20 Oct. 2026
There are studies suggesting that being on a regular training regimen reduces your risk of cancer recurrence.

— Samantha Ciaccia, Glamour, 19 Oct. 2026

Definition of reduces

Verb

Qualcomm’s chip can run Linux, along with Arduino software, and can even do computer vision, which deciphers what a camera sees and translates it into software.

— Kif Leswing, CNBC, 7 Oct. 2025
With that base knowledge and his opponent’s game tape, Nolan analyzes wide receiver alignments and deciphers the offense's attack.

— Caleb Yum, Austin American Statesman, 18 Sep. 2025

Definition of deciphers

Verb

The new spending comes as the group pauses ads in Georgia and North Carolina, states where Democratic candidates Jon Ossoff and Roy Cooper are favored to win.

— Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 14 Oct. 2026
By default, the right earbud plays and pauses with a single tap, skips to the next track with a double tap, and turns the volume up with a tap-and-hold.

— Christian de Looper, PC Magazine, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of pauses

Verb

KaVontae Turpin makes a defender miss in the open field on third down, picks up the first, and Williams plows it in for the TD.

— Jim Barnes, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 Sep. 2026
Every year, our planet plows through this stream of cometary material, causing tiny fragments — many no larger than a grain of sand — to slam into Earth's atmosphere at around 133,000 mph (214,000 km/h).

— Daisy Dobrijevic, Space.com, 12 Aug. 2026

Definition of plows

Verb

The civil case seeks judicial review to override the council’s decision, which attorneys for the church argue was wrongly made, oversteps city authority and violates the Cathedral’s First Amendment rights to freely practice religion.

— Mark Dee, Idaho Statesman, 22 Oct. 2026
Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify any entrant that tampers with the operation of the Competition or website or violates the Official Rules of the Competition.

— CBS News, CBS News, 21 Oct. 2026

Definition of violates

Verb

Petal solves this using a single-body 96-amp repeater equipped with a specialized Fan-In/Fan-Out interface.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 19 Oct. 2026
Ooni’s Volt 2, an electric countertop pizza oven, solves that problem, reaching commercial temperatures of up to 850 degrees Fahrenheit safely.

— Derek Rose, Time, 15 Oct. 2026