break English · revision 2552

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=c. 725 (Old English brecan, Beowulf)|origins=ine-pro *bhreg-}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /breɪk/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|breken]], [[inh|ang|brecan|t=to divide violently into parts; to violate; to burst forth]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(SOED 2002) from [[gem-pro|*brekaną]].^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) Its cognates include [[ofs|breka]], [[osx|brekan]], [[nl|breken]] and [[de|brechen]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(SOED 2002) and Gothic has brikan.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) It is from [[ine-pro|*bhreg-|t=to break]],^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)^(Klein 1966)^(AHD 2000) the source also of Latin [[m|la|frangere|t=to break]].^(Hoad 1986)^(Klein 1966)^(MWU 2024) It is related to [[breach]], [[brake]] and [[brick]],^(Etymonline) and through Latin to [[fragile]] and [[fracture]].^(Klein 1966)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ To divide solid matter into pieces by force: Old English ''brecan'', about 725 in ''Beowulf'';^(Barnhart 1988) Middle English ''breken'' appears before 1121, in the ''Peterborough Chronicle''.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ In Old English the verb also meant “to violate a promise”, “to subdue, tame” and “to burst forth”,^(Etymonline) and it was used of bones.^(Etymonline) The intransitive sense “to come apart into fragments” is from the late 12th century.^(Etymonline) “To make a first disclosure”, as in ''break the news'', is from the early 13th century,^(Etymonline) and ''break someone's heart'' from the late 14th.^(Etymonline) “To escape by breaking out” is from the late 14th century,^(Etymonline) and “to lessen, impair” from the late 15th.^(Etymonline) The old past tense ''brake'' began to be displaced by ''broke'' in the 15th century.^(Hoad 1986) “To destroy the completeness of”, as of a set, is from 1741,^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) and of money, “to change into smaller units”, by 1882.^(Etymonline) ''Break ground'' is from the 1670s, and figuratively “to begin a plan” from 1709.^(Etymonline) The noun, the act of breaking, is from about 1300^(Etymonline) or before 1300.^(OED 1989) ''Break of day'' is from the 1580s^(Etymonline) or 1584.^(OED 1989) A sudden change of course or state is by 1725.^(Etymonline) A short interval between periods of work came later,^(Etymonline) as did a stroke of luck, ''a lucky break''.^(AHD)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 725 – Old English ''brecan'' (''Beowulf'').^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * late 12th century – to come apart.^(Etymonline)

+ * early 13th century – to disclose.^(Etymonline)

+ * c. 1300 – noun, an act of breaking.^(Etymonline)

+ * late 14th century – to escape, and ''break someone's heart''.^(Etymonline)

+ * 15th century – past tense ''broke''.^(Hoad 1986)

+ * 1584 – ''break of day''.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1741 – to break a set.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1882 – to break a banknote.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Verb===

+ # To separate into pieces suddenly or violently; to [[smash]].^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+ # To crack or fracture, as a bone.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # To make or become unusable; to stop working.^(AHD)

+ # To violate: ''break a promise''.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # To interrupt or end: ''break the silence''.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # To escape from or force a way through.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # To tell: ''break the news''.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # To change money into smaller units.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # To begin or burst forth: ''day broke''.^(AHD)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # The act of breaking, or the result, such as a crack or gap.^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+ # An interruption; a pause or rest from work.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # A sudden change: ''a break with tradition''.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # ''(informal)'' A chance or piece of luck.^(AHD)

+ # An escape; a dash.^(AHD)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[breakable]]

+ * [[breakableness]]

+ * [[breakably]]

+ * [[breakless]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[breaker]]

+ * [[broke]]

+ * [[broken]]

+ * [[breach]]

+ * [[brake]]

+ * [[brick]]

+ * [[fragile]]

+ * [[fracture]]

+ * [[fraction]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ The American Heritage Dictionary compares ''break'', the most general term, with ''crack'', ''fracture'', ''burst'', ''split'', ''splinter'', ''shatter'', ''shiver'' and ''smash''.^(AHD) A separate ''break'', a large wagonette or a frame for breaking in horses, is from 1831, perhaps from 16th-century ''brake'', “cage”.^(OED 1989)^(COED 2004)^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}