1
as in disbanded
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 stopped
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 divided
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 cracked
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
5
as in ceased
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 disrupted
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 laughed
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 broke up
Midnight Oil broke up in 2002 when singer Peter Garrett left to pursue a political career in Australia’s Labor Party.
—
Los Angeles Times, 21 Jan. 2026
Roope Hintz broke up Dostál’s shutout in the dying embers.
—Andrew Knoll, Oc Register, 14 Jan. 2026
After The Beatles broke up in 1970, Paul McCartney released two solo albums, but then sought to get back into a band setting.
—Melinda Newman, Billboard, 14 Jan. 2026
Antoine was called for a pass interference during Mississippi’s late TD drive but also broke up a pass that could have been a first down.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 9 Jan. 2026
In 2024, officials broke up a multistate trafficking operation based on the Crow reservation that distributed drugs to other Montana reservations.
—Katheryn Houghton, NPR, 8 Jan. 2026
Kelce and Nicole, 34, broke up multiple times throughout their five years together, and made several public comments and back-and-forths about each other on social media and in interviews over the years.
—Sean Neumann, PEOPLE, 8 Jan. 2026
The White Stripes broke up almost 15 years ago, but discussions of Meg’s drumming are still taking place.
—Angie Martoccio, Rolling Stone, 5 Nov. 2025
Drop Nineteens broke up in 1995 and reunited in 2022.
—Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 5 Nov. 2025
Los Angeles Times, 21 Jan. 2026
Roope Hintz broke up Dostál’s shutout in the dying embers.
—Andrew Knoll, Oc Register, 14 Jan. 2026
After The Beatles broke up in 1970, Paul McCartney released two solo albums, but then sought to get back into a band setting.
—Melinda Newman, Billboard, 14 Jan. 2026
Antoine was called for a pass interference during Mississippi’s late TD drive but also broke up a pass that could have been a first down.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 9 Jan. 2026
In 2024, officials broke up a multistate trafficking operation based on the Crow reservation that distributed drugs to other Montana reservations.
—Katheryn Houghton, NPR, 8 Jan. 2026
Kelce and Nicole, 34, broke up multiple times throughout their five years together, and made several public comments and back-and-forths about each other on social media and in interviews over the years.
—Sean Neumann, PEOPLE, 8 Jan. 2026
The White Stripes broke up almost 15 years ago, but discussions of Meg’s drumming are still taking place.
—Angie Martoccio, Rolling Stone, 5 Nov. 2025
Drop Nineteens broke up in 1995 and reunited in 2022.
—Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 5 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for broke up
Verb
-
Roberson and Luckett were dropped from the group in 2000, and Destiny's Child (who at that point were a trio of Beyoncé, Rowland and Michelle Williams) disbanded in 2005.—
Diana Pearl,
PEOPLE,
1 Feb. 2026
-
The entire organization should be disbanded and reorganized and its agents retrained.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The Department of Justice also stopped investigating the agent, Jonathan Ross, and federal authorities blocked state investigators from participating in the probe.—
Alaa Elassar,
CNN Money,
2 Feb. 2026
-
After Pretti kicked out the taillight, the vehicle stopped, and a federal officer exited before grabbing Pretti and tackling him to the ground.—
Hailey Bullis,
The Washington Examiner,
2 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Best Score was divided between musicals and dramas, and some craft categories between black-and-white and color, so there was no way a film could have been nominated for everything.—
Nate Jones,
Vulture,
31 Jan. 2026
-
The company spent three days last week building the final version of the structure, which is divided into sections on rails so it can be assembled and taken apart without doing so over the rink itself.—
Joe Smith,
New York Times,
31 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The courtroom doors cracked open, and a Black woman with long dreads walked in.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
31 Jan. 2026
-
The nonprofit, which installed cameras to monitor and livestream the eagles, said a raven flew into the bald eagles' nest and cracked at least one of the eggs.—
Matthew Rodriguez,
CBS News,
31 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Then all movement ceased and he was pronounced dead 22 minutes later.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
29 Jan. 2026
-
The lawsuit effectively shut down GARM, which ceased operations citing limited resources to fight the legal battle.—
Lily Mae Lazarus,
Fortune,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Types of polar vortex events Meteorologists generally track two main ways the polar vortex behaves when it’s disrupted.—
Brandi D. Addison,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
3 Feb. 2026
-
For the operation, the team used a multi-node mesh network that could reroute data automatically through other available noted, if certain parts of the network were disrupted.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
3 Feb. 2026
Verb
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While none of the Alexanders appeared to crack any smiles, Agnifilo laughed along gamely when the judge and prospective jurors exchanged jokes to lighten a tense mood.—
Dan Adler,
Vanity Fair,
27 Jan. 2026
-
During their visit to the working handweaving studio, the Princess of Wales laughed and placed a hand on her husband's arm.—
Janine Henni,
PEOPLE,
21 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The Energy and Sustainability Solutions segment is being dissolved as UOP will combine with the core process solutions division of Industrial Automation to form the new Process Automation and Technology segment.—
Zev Fima,
CNBC,
29 Jan. 2026
-
While seeing one of the marquee mainstage artists of the EDM era and beyond on a club tour might be surprising, Afrojack says this in this era of dance music, the rules around genres and which type of artists can play them are — at least among artists themselves — dissolved.—
Katie Bain,
Billboard,
29 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Broke up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/broke%20up. Accessed 4 Feb. 2026.
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