Synonyms of breaking
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as in disrupting
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as in stopping
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as in reducing
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as in deciphering
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as in pausing
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as in plowing
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as in violating
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as in solving
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as in damaging
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as in dying
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as in retreating
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as in wearing
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as in spreading
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as in bankrupting
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as in originating
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as in veering
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as in lowering
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as in exceeding
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as in surfacing
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Example Sentences
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Phrases Containing
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Entries Near
1
as in disrupting
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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2
as in stopping
to bring (as an action or operation) to an immediate end
the final vote broke the deadlock
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3
as in reducing
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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4
as in deciphering
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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5
as in pausing
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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6
as in plowing
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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7
as in violating
to fail to keep
had to confess that he had broken his promise not to share their conversation with anyone
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8
as in solving
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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9
as in damaging
to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of
I broke a tooth on the hard candy
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10
as in dying
to stop functioning
after working for 30 years, the pump simply broke one day
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11
as in retreating
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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12
as in wearing
to use up all the physical energy of
the trek up the mountain just about broke me
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13
as in spreading
to become known
as soon as the scandal broke, the CEO fled the country
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14
as in bankrupting
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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15
as in originating
to come into existence
the crisis had passed, and a new day was breaking
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16
as in veering
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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17
as in lowering
to diminish the price or value of
distressing economic news that will break many energy stocks
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18
as in exceeding
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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19
as in surfacing
to penetrate the surface (as of water) from below
dolphins were breaking all around the boat
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of breaking
Nvidia’s GPUs, first developed in 1999 for rendering graphics on computers and gaming consoles, function by breaking complex computing problems into smaller tasks and resolving them simultaneously.
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Matthew Chin, CNBC, 19 May 2026
The two string-breaking simulations are among the first to model particle interactions in two spatial dimensions, González-Cuadra says.
—Zeeya Merali, Scientific American, 19 May 2026
The most important challenge is breaking the virus transmission chain, Muyembe said.
—ABC News, 19 May 2026
Download the Star app on iOS or Android to get breaking news alerts.
—Sofi Zeman
may 19, Kansas City Star, 19 May 2026
Howard County police are searching for a person who was caught on camera breaking into an auto shop earlier this month.
—Adam Thompson, CBS News, 19 May 2026
Tim Stelloh Tim Stelloh is a breaking news reporter for NBC News Digital.
—Madison Lambert, NBC news, 19 May 2026
Everything now centered on his homecoming, when the family would celebrate by breaking the dawn-to-dusk fast of Ramadan with a feast.
—Dan Barry, New York Times, 12 May 2026
The Last Supper depicted Jesus breaking bread with his followers, one of which would soon betray him.
—Megan Garber, The Atlantic, 12 May 2026
Matthew Chin, CNBC, 19 May 2026
The two string-breaking simulations are among the first to model particle interactions in two spatial dimensions, González-Cuadra says.
—Zeeya Merali, Scientific American, 19 May 2026
The most important challenge is breaking the virus transmission chain, Muyembe said.
—ABC News, 19 May 2026
Download the Star app on iOS or Android to get breaking news alerts.
—Sofi Zeman
may 19, Kansas City Star, 19 May 2026
Howard County police are searching for a person who was caught on camera breaking into an auto shop earlier this month.
—Adam Thompson, CBS News, 19 May 2026
Tim Stelloh Tim Stelloh is a breaking news reporter for NBC News Digital.
—Madison Lambert, NBC news, 19 May 2026
Everything now centered on his homecoming, when the family would celebrate by breaking the dawn-to-dusk fast of Ramadan with a feast.
—Dan Barry, New York Times, 12 May 2026
The Last Supper depicted Jesus breaking bread with his followers, one of which would soon betray him.
—Megan Garber, The Atlantic, 12 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for breaking
Verb
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The Port of Seattle and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport endured a cyberattack in August 2024 initiated by a ransomware group that caused some IT system outages disrupting Wi-Fi, facility websites, flight display screens and check-in kiosks.—
Glenn Taylor,
Footwear News,
15 May 2026
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The process of how art gets made seems to change every day, with new technologies disrupting old workflows and evolving methods of distribution and monetization.—
Christian Zilko,
IndieWire,
14 May 2026
Verb
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Those unable to swim two lengths of the pool without stopping should have a parent remain close enough to reach them.—
Laura Berrios,
AJC.com,
19 May 2026
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The storm never fully fired, and Lisius and George eventually made their way back to Arlington, stopping for tacos along the way.—
Emily Holshouser
May 19,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
19 May 2026
Verb
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Eco effort The Pig group’s 25-mile menu keeps suppliers local, reducing food miles and packaging in the process.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
16 May 2026
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Its document generation tools guide founders through complex legal processes step by step, reducing errors and ensuring completeness.—
AllBusiness,
Forbes.com,
16 May 2026
Verb
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Currently, judges in California courts are responsible for deciphering the nuances of California’s Invasion of Privacy law.—
Kate Wolffe,
Sacbee.com,
14 May 2026
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The study creates new criteria for deciphering old dice and allows archaeologists to further explore how games have evolved over time, researchers say.—
Taylor Nicioli,
CNN Money,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
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And Charlotte City Council is on the brink of pausing accepting or approving data center projects to provide time for impact studies and possibly regulations.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
13 May 2026
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Congress would need to approve pausing the federal gas tax.—
Jeff Wagner,
CBS News,
13 May 2026
Verb
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Security footage showed a black vehicle plowing through and swiping the vehicle next to it.—
Julia Avant,
CBS News,
14 May 2026
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Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft have been plowing hundreds of billions of dollars a year into AI.—
Jason Ma,
Fortune,
10 May 2026
Verb
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Cuba has said the planes were violating Cuban airspace.—
Carmen Sesin,
NBC news,
20 May 2026
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Driscoll pleaded guilty later in 2010 to violating the order of protection, which was later terminated.—
Ilana Arougheti,
Kansas City Star,
20 May 2026
Verb
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The company also introduced a scalable training system aimed at solving the long-standing data shortage in robotics foundation models.—
Jijo Malayil,
Interesting Engineering,
18 May 2026
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Those who do not may eventually discover that their AI has been amplifying the mess rather than solving it.—
Philip Brittan,
Forbes.com,
18 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Breaking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/breaking. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
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