Synonyms of broke
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as in poor
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as in disrupted
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as in ended
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as in demoted
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as in deciphered
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as in paused
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as in plowed
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as in violated
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as in solved
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as in damaged
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as in died
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as in retreated
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as in wore
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as in circulated
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as in ruined
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as in began
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as in veered
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as in reduced
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as in exceeded
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as in surfaced
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Example Sentences
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Entries Near
as in poor
lacking money or material possessions
too broke to afford even a used car
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in disrupted
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 ended
to bring (as an action or operation) to an immediate end
the final vote broke the deadlock
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3
as in demoted
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 deciphered
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 paused
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 plowed
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 violated
to fail to keep
had to confess that he had broken his promise not to share their conversation with anyone
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
8
as in solved
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 damaged
to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of
I broke a tooth on the hard candy
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10
as in died
to stop functioning
after working for 30 years, the pump simply broke one day
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11
as in retreated
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 wore
to use up all the physical energy of
the trek up the mountain just about broke me
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13
as in circulated
to become known
as soon as the scandal broke, the CEO fled the country
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14
as in ruined
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 began
to come into existence
the crisis had passed, and a new day was breaking
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16
as in veered
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 reduced
to diminish the price or value of
distressing economic news that will break many energy stocks
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18
as in exceeded
to go beyond the limit of
a menu with prices that is likely to break the budgets of all but the wealthiest of diners
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of broke
Greg Evans, Deadline, 26 Apr. 2026
The go-for-broke Ducks charged out of the tunnel and skated circles around the Edmonton Oilers in the first period.
—Eric Stephens, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2026
Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 2 May 2026
Martinez was the backup catcher for Cypress’ baseball team until Noah Johnson broke his right hand earlier this month and Martinez moved into the starting lineup.
—Steve Fryer, Oc Register, 25 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for broke
Adjective
The Lost Boys, like First Shadow and Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, goes for broke in embracing the admittedly loonier side of their chiller-thriller adventures.
—Greg Evans, Deadline, 26 Apr. 2026
The go-for-broke Ducks charged out of the tunnel and skated circles around the Edmonton Oilers in the first period.
—Eric Stephens, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2026
Verb
Meidroth broke for home when Machado threw, and after getting the force, Tatis chose to try to get him at the plate.
—Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 2 May 2026
Martinez was the backup catcher for Cypress’ baseball team until Noah Johnson broke his right hand earlier this month and Martinez moved into the starting lineup.
—Steve Fryer, Oc Register, 25 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for broke
Recent Examples of Synonyms for broke
Adjective
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Injuries to key players on the Amazin’s contributed to some poor numbers as well.—
Fiifi Frimpong,
New York Daily News,
28 Apr. 2026
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Although poor students are disproportionately likely to receive special education in New York City, well-off disabled kids are the ones most acutely driving up the budget.—
Marc Novicoff,
The Atlantic,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The United Nations Development Programme reports that higher energy prices, disrupted food systems, and economic slowdowns triggered by the war could push up to thirty-two million people globally into poverty.—
Sudarsan Raghavan,
New Yorker,
28 Apr. 2026
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Disasters threaten treatment The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration works with states to ensure that access to opioid use disorder medication isn't disrupted, Health and Human Services spokesperson Emily Hilliard said.—
Andrew Jones,
NPR,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
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His step-back jumper with 32 seconds left was the exclamation point, a shot that ended Orlando’s final push and extended Detroit’s season.—
Mike Bianchi,
The Orlando Sentinel,
30 Apr. 2026
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The program was created by Congress to help quickly protect nationals of countries that, as a result of natural or man-made disasters, were dangerous for people to return to, with routine reevaluations to decide if the protections would be extended or ended.—
New York Daily News Editorial Board,
New York Daily News,
29 Apr. 2026
Verb
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This was controversial to the public, though, with many feeling that Pluto had been demoted in a dishonorable sense, unjustly kicked out of the club of astronomical objects that people actually care about.—
Frank Landymore,
Futurism,
29 Apr. 2026
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Pavel Dorofeyev, Vegas’ leading scorer in the regular season, has yet to record a point in the series and was demoted down the lineup by Tortorella on Friday.—
Jesse Granger,
New York Times,
25 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The researchers then deciphered certain traits that were linked to the habit.—
Angelica Stabile,
FOXNews.com,
8 Apr. 2026
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Kinsella was excited for Yates’ voice to be an easter egg—one of many voices to be deciphered by fans among a scream-singing chorus.—
Jazz Monroe,
Pitchfork,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
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While Brighton paused momentarily, anticipating a whistle, Murphy got back to his feet and crossed for Osula to head unchallenged into a free net.—
Anantaajith Raghuraman,
New York Times,
4 May 2026
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At the request of drugmakers, Justice Samuel Alito paused until May 11 the restrictive ruling by a lower court while the full court decides what the rules for mifepristone should be as Louisiana challenges expanded access.—
Maureen Groppe,
USA Today,
4 May 2026
Verb
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Brin and a cohort of the ultrawealthy including Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong and venture capitalists Vinod Khosla and John Doerr have plowed millions into supporting Matt Mahan, a Silicon Valley mayor, with a back-to-basics agenda and a penchant for taking on the state’s Democratic establishment.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
27 Apr. 2026
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Nvidia — Shares of the chip giant popped about 1% as investors plowed money back into tech stocks.—
Davis Giangiulio,Darla Mercado, CFP®,
CNBC,
15 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Although these driverless taxis were susceptible to citations from local law enforcement, laxity in autonomous vehicle regulations left California law enforcement puzzled about how to address vehicles that violated the state's road laws.—
Noe Padilla,
USA Today,
4 May 2026
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The trial marks the second phase of New Mexico’s lawsuit after a jury in March found Meta violated the state’s consumer protection law by misrepresenting the safety of Facebook and Instagram for young users and ordered the company to pay $375 million in damages.—
Reuters,
NBC news,
4 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Broke.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/broke. Accessed 7 May. 2026.
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