1
as in classified
to arrange or assign according to type
when presented with the pile of files, the first thing he did was to break them down by month, order within the month, and region
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in decomposed
to go through decomposition
the enamel of a human tooth will begin to break down when exposed to sugar for too long
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in analyzed
to identify and examine the basic elements or parts of (something) especially for discovering interrelationships
if we break the problem down into what appear to be three aspects of it, we'll have a better chance of solving it
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in died
to stop functioning
the computer finally broke down and had to be replaced
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in melted down
to yield to mental or emotional stress
began to break down when he realized that he was on the verge of bankruptcy
Synonyms & Similar Words
6
as in knocked down
to take apart
the crew was breaking down the party tent when we arrived
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
7
as in shattered
to cause to break with violence and much noise
firefighters had to break down the wall to rescue the kitten
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of broke down
After a hot tag to Adam Copeland, the match broke down into chaos.
—
Andrew Ravens, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Sep. 2025
In fact, Elliott nearly missed her performance slot because her tour bus broke down on the highway.
—Rachel Brodsky, Rolling Stone, 19 Sep. 2025
Galicia Lopez broke down the front door of the residence while the other two men remained outside, prosecutors said.
—Caelyn Pender, Mercury News, 12 Sep. 2025
Brent Lang, Variety‘s executive editor, also broke down the 2025 summer box office haul, reflecting on the underwhelming overall tally for the crucial frame.
—Andrew McGowan, Variety, 6 Sep. 2025
Netanyahu initially said Israel would conquer all of Gaza after indirect talks with Hamas on a ceasefire and hostage release deal broke down in July.
—Emma Bussey, FOXNews.com, 5 Sep. 2025
Skenes then broke down why reliever Evan Sisk picked up his first big league victory by pitching a scoreless seventh before the Pirates took the lead for good in the bottom of the inning when Henry Davis dashed home following a wild pitch.
—Will Graves, Denver Post, 19 Aug. 2025
In the early 2000s, companies rushed into massive ERP implementations—only to abandon them when workflows broke down.
—Erik Greenstein, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2025
Andrew Ravens, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Sep. 2025
In fact, Elliott nearly missed her performance slot because her tour bus broke down on the highway.
—Rachel Brodsky, Rolling Stone, 19 Sep. 2025
Galicia Lopez broke down the front door of the residence while the other two men remained outside, prosecutors said.
—Caelyn Pender, Mercury News, 12 Sep. 2025
Brent Lang, Variety‘s executive editor, also broke down the 2025 summer box office haul, reflecting on the underwhelming overall tally for the crucial frame.
—Andrew McGowan, Variety, 6 Sep. 2025
Netanyahu initially said Israel would conquer all of Gaza after indirect talks with Hamas on a ceasefire and hostage release deal broke down in July.
—Emma Bussey, FOXNews.com, 5 Sep. 2025
Skenes then broke down why reliever Evan Sisk picked up his first big league victory by pitching a scoreless seventh before the Pirates took the lead for good in the bottom of the inning when Henry Davis dashed home following a wild pitch.
—Will Graves, Denver Post, 19 Aug. 2025
In the early 2000s, companies rushed into massive ERP implementations—only to abandon them when workflows broke down.
—Erik Greenstein, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for broke down
Verb
-
Geomagnetic storms are classified using a G-scale, which ranks their intensity from G1 (minor) to G5 (extreme).—
Daisy Dobrijevic,
Space.com,
17 Sep. 2025
-
Despite being the first voice in nearly every emergency, dispatchers are often classified as clerical staff instead of first responders.—
Jason Truppi,
Fortune,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Rivas’ cause and manner of death are still being determined by the medical examiner; the exam is taking longer than usual as the remains were severely decomposed.—
Kevin Dolak,
HollywoodReporter,
19 Sep. 2025
-
The state medical examiner discussed possible strangulation, citing the belt, but acknowledged under cross-examination that telltale signs were not visible because the remains were burned and decomposed, according to court records.—
Christina Coulter,
PEOPLE,
17 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The James Webb Space Telescope has already analyzed the chemistry of over 100 exoplanet atmospheres, NASA notes.—
Bruce Dorminey,
Forbes.com,
19 Sep. 2025
-
The Los Angeles Police Department said several pieces of evidence were recovered and will be analyzed.—
Andrew Blankstein,
NBC news,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
According to Gaza’s health ministry, more than 65,000 Palestinians have died so far in the Israel-Hamas war.—
Ross O'Keefe,
The Washington Examiner,
18 Sep. 2025
-
Kirk died on September 10 during a public Turning Point USA event hosted by the activist at Utah Valley University.—
Marni Rose McFall,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Sep. 2025
Verb
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An ancient gold bracelet belonging to an Egyptian pharaoh that had disappeared from a museum in Cairo was stolen and later melted down, the country's Interior Ministry said Thursday.—
Charlene Gubash,
NBC news,
18 Sep. 2025
-
Cairo, Egypt Reuters — A 3,000-year-old gold bracelet that disappeared from an Egyptian museum earlier this month was stolen and melted down, the country’s Interior Ministry said on Thursday.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
18 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
But one simply has to appreciate the cruel irony of such a deluxe number being knocked down by a pedestrian bus rather than, say, a Rolls-Royce or a Daimler.—
Rosemary Feitelberg,
Footwear News,
18 Sep. 2025
-
Kolek knocked down nearly 40 percent of his three-point attempts across his final two collegiate campaigns.—
Bobby Krivitsky,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Getty Images The nascent campaign has already shattered the record for philanthropic money raised in support of hosting an Olympic and Paralympic Games.—
Blythe Lawrence,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
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When your industry is being shattered by greed?—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
15 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Environmental and human rights investigative group Global Witness said that in 2023 Honduras ranked the third deadliest – tying with Mexico, behind Colombia and Brazil – for environmental defenders and had the world’s highest number of killings of environment defenders per capita.—
Hira Humayun,
CNN Money,
20 Sep. 2025
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Alibaba has also launched its own AI models and tools for generating text and videos, which ranked among the top 10 on the open-source platform Hugging Face.—
Evelyn Cheng,
CNBC,
20 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Broke down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/broke%20down. Accessed 22 Sep. 2025.
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