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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Recent Examples of broken
Adjective
The city’s growth has far outpaced the existing sewage treatment plants, and inadequate and broken facilities spew waste into the river, polluting the water and air in Imperial Beach and other communities near the border.—Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 23 Apr. 2025 Conservators will continue to restore and fit together its broken murals, in an effort to see more of the villa’s rich decoration.—Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Apr. 2025
Verb
Buffalo’s season is all but over, and the team has looked broken.—Matthew Fairburn, The Athletic, 24 Dec. 2024 When the pot was broken, the gifts would spill out, acting as an offering to Huitzilopochtli.—Monica Navarro, The Arizona Republic, 24 Dec. 2024 See All Example Sentences for broken
The two men had worked together for years, selling everything from colon cleanses to get-rich-quick advice, before pivoting to crypto with uneven results.
—
Eric Lipton,
New York Times,
29 Apr. 2025
An even newer device, an electronic screener or balance board, measures foot movements as the patient tries to balance themselves on an uneven surface with their eyes open, and then closed.
After realizing the mother of three was awake, the intruder immediately bolted out out of the room.
—
Vivian Kwarm,
New York Daily News,
17 Dec. 2024
An overdose episode — Kiana bolted barefoot from their rural home and went missing overnight in the woods — brought police attention and led to charges for child endangerment.
News of Baek-jin taking tens of thousands of dollars out of the burner account spreads discord among Baek-jin’s ranks, who are only in it for the money.
—
Kayti Burt,
Time,
26 Apr. 2025
Perkins spread the ball around, with seven different players recording a catch.
—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
26 Apr. 2025
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