an escape from jail; "the breakout was carefully planned";
any frame in which a bowler fails to make a strike or spare; "the break in the eighth frame cost him the match";
a sudden dash; "he made a break for the open door";
the act of breaking something; "the breakage was unavoidable";
an act of delaying or interrupting the continuity; "it was presented without commercial breaks";
(tennis) a score consisting of winning a game when your opponent was serving; "he was up two breaks in the second set";
the opening shot that scatters the balls in billiards or pool;
a pause from doing something (as work); "we took a 10-minute break"; "he took time out to recuperate";
a personal or social separation (as between opposing factions); "they hoped to avoid a break in relations";
an unexpected piece of good luck; "he finally got his big break";
the occurrence of breaking; "the break in the dam threatened the valley";
some abrupt occurrence that interrupts; "the telephone is an annoying interruption"; "there was a break in the action when a player was hurt";
(geology) a crack in the earth''s crust resulting from the displacement of one side with respect to the other; "they built it right over a geological fault";
breaking of hard tissue such as bone; "it was a nasty fracture"; "the break seems to have been caused by a fall";
a time interval during which there is a temporary cessation of something;
weaken or destroy in spirit or body; "His resistance was broken"; "a man broken by the terrible experience of near-death";
diminish or discontinue abruptly; "The patient''s fever broke last night";
fracture a bone of; "I broke my foot while playing hockey";
fall sharply; "stock prices broke";
make submissive, obedient, or useful; "The horse was tough to break"; "I broke in the new intern";
be broken in; "If the new teacher won''t break, we''ll add some stress";
of the male voice in puberty; "his voice is breaking--he should no longer sing in the choir";
render inoperable or ineffective; "You broke the alarm clock when you took it apart!";
become separated into pieces or fragments; "The figurine broke"; "The freshly baked loaf fell apart";
destroy the integrity of; usually by force; cause to separate into pieces or fragments; "He broke the glass plate"; "She broke the match";
become fractured; break or crack on the surface only; "The glass cracked when it was heated";
happen; "Report the news as it develops"; "These political movements recrudesce from time to time";
prevent completion; "stop the project"; "break off the negociations";
terminate; "She interrupted her pregnancy"; "break a lucky streak"; "break the cycle of poverty";
lessen in force or effect; "soften a shock"; "break a fall";
stop operating or functioning; "The engine finally went"; "The car died on the road"; "The bus we travelled in broke down on the way to town"; "The coffee maker broke"; "The engine failed on the way to town"; "her eyesight went after the accident";
change suddenly from one tone quality or register to another; "Her voice broke to a whisper when she started to talk about her children";
come into being; "light broke over the horizon"; "Voices broke in the air";
find the solution or key to; "break the code";
find a flaw in; "break an alibi"; "break down a proof";
undergo breaking; "The simple vowels broke in many Germanic languages";
interrupt the flow of current in; "break a circuit";
cease an action temporarily; "We pause for station identification"; "let''s break for lunch";
make known to the public information that was previously known only to a few people or that was meant to be kept a secret; "The auction house would not disclose the price at which the van Gogh had sold"; "The actress won''t reveal how old she is"; "bring;
be released or become known; of news; "News of her death broke in the morning";
surpass in excellence; "She bettered her own record"; "break a record";
pierce or penetrate; "The blade broke her skin";
become punctured or penetrated; "The skin broke";
break a piece from a whole; "break a branch from a tree";
go to pieces; "The lawn mower finally broke"; "The gears wore out"; "The old chair finally fell apart completely";
ruin completely; "He busted my radio!";
separate from a clinch, in boxing; "The referee broke the boxers";
make the opening shot that scatters the balls;
destroy the completeness of a set of related items; "The book dealer would not break the set";
exchange for smaller units of money; "I had to break a $100 bill just to buy the candy";
force out or release suddenly and often violently something pent up; "break into tears"; "erupt in anger";
do a break dance; "Kids were break-dancing at the street corner";
curl over and fall apart in surf or foam, of waves; "The surf broke";
break down, literally or metaphorically; "The wall collapsed"; "The business collapsed"; "The dam broke"; "The roof collapsed"; "The wall gave in"; "The roof finally gave under the weight of the ice";
emerge from the surface of a body of water; "The whales broke";
scatter or part; "The clouds broke after the heavy downpour";
make a rupture in the ranks of the enemy or one''s own by quitting or fleeing; "The ranks broke";
move away or escape suddenly; "The horses broke from the stable"; "Three inmates broke jail"; "Nobody can break out--this prison is high security";
change directions suddenly;
reduce to bankruptcy; "My daughter''s fancy wedding is going to break me!"; "The slump in the financial markets smashed him";
assign to a lower position; reduce in rank; "She was demoted because she always speaks up"; "He was broken down to Sargeant";
discontinue an association or relation; go different ways; "The business partners broke over a tax question"; "The couple separated after 25 years of marriage"; "My friend and I split up";
invalidate by judicial action; "The will was broken";
interrupt a continued activity; "She had broken with the traditional patterns";
cause the failure or ruin of; "His peccadilloes finally broke his marriage"; "This play will either make or break the playwright";
act in disregard of laws and rules; "offend all laws of humanity"; "violate the basic laws or human civilization"; "break a law";
enter someone''s property in an unauthorized manner, usually with the intent to steal or commit a violent act; "Someone broke in while I was on vacation"; "They broke into my car and stole my radio!";
happen or take place; "Things have been breaking pretty well for us in the past few months";
come forth or begin from a state of latency; "The first winter storm broke over New York";
fail to agree with; be in violation of; as of rules or patterns; "This sentence violates the rules of syntax";
give up; "break cigarette smoking";
cause to give up a habit; "She finally broke herself of smoking cigarettes";
vary or interrupt a uniformity or continuity; "The flat plain was broken by tall mesas";
come to an end; "The heat wave finally broke yesterday";
