Synonyms and antonyms of To break in British Thesaurus

break (verb)

to make something separate into two or more pieces, for example by hitting or dropping it

fall apart ()

to break because of being old or badly made

shatter (verb)

to break something suddenly into a lot of small pieces

crumble (verb)

to break something into very small pieces, or to be broken into very small pieces

disintegrate (verb)

to be completely destroyed by breaking into lots of very small pieces, for example as the result of an explosion

fragment (verb)

if something fragments or is fragmented, it breaks into a lot of separate pieces or parts

splinter (verb)

to break into small sharp pieces, or to make something do this

break up ()

to break something to make smaller pieces

smash (verb)

to break something noisily into many pieces by dropping or hitting it with a lot of force

shatter (verb)

to break suddenly into a lot of small pieces

batter down ()

to break a door or gate in order to get through it

blow in ()

if a window blows in, or if something blows it in, it breaks into pieces that fall inside the building

blow out ()

if a window blows out, or if something blows it out, it breaks into pieces that fall outside the building

break (verb)

if something breaks, it becomes damaged and separates into pieces

break (verb)

to make a hole or cut in the surface of something

break up ()

if something breaks up, it breaks into smaller pieces

bust (verb)

informal to break or damage something very badly

chip (verb)

if something hard chips, or if you chip it, a small piece of it breaks off

chip off ()

to remove small pieces of something from a surface by hitting it

cleave (verb)

literary to cut or break something into two parts with a lot of force

come apart ()

if an object comes apart, it separates into pieces, either because it has been made that way or because it is very old or in very bad condition

come away (British)

British if one thing comes away from another that it was fixed to, it becomes separated from it by accident

crack (verb)

if something cracks, a line or long narrow hole appears on its surface, but it does not break into pieces

crumble (verb)

if something hard such as stone or a brick crumbles or crumbles away, parts of it fall off because it is very old or damaged

crush (verb)

to press something so hard that it breaks into very small pieces

decompose (verb)

science if a chemical compound decomposes, it separates into the smaller parts that it consists of

fall away ()

if something falls away, it breaks off from the thing it was fixed to

fall to bits/pieces ()

to be in a very bad condition because of being old or badly made

flake (verb)

to come off a surface in small flat pieces

fracture (verb)

if something hard fractures or is fractured, it breaks or cracks

fray (verb)

if a rope or piece of cloth frays or is frayed, the fibres in it become loose and start to come apart

give (verb)

if something that supports or holds something gives, it breaks

grind (verb)

to break something into very small pieces or powder, by using a machine or by crushing it between two hard surfaces

peel (verb)

if something peels, small pieces of it or of something covering it start to become separated from it

pulverise ()

another spelling of pulverize

pulverize (verb)

to crush something into very small pieces, or powder, or a nearly liquid substance

puncture (verb)

if a tyre or ball punctures, it gets a small hole through which the air comes out

rip (verb)

to be torn

shear (verb)

to remove a part of something by cutting or breaking it, or to be removed in this way

smash (verb)

to break noisily into many pieces

smash/blow something to smithereens ()

to destroy something by breaking it into very small pieces

smash/break/tear etc something to pieces ()

to break something into so many pieces that it is completely destroyed

smash down ()

to make something fall down and break into pieces by hitting it very hard

smash up ()

to destroy something completely by violently breaking it into many pieces

snap (verb)

to suddenly break something with a short loud noise, or to be broken in this way

split (verb)

to divide or break something into several parts, or to be divided or broken into several parts

split (verb)

to make a long thin cut or break in something

spring a leak ()

if a container or a boat springs a leak, it cracks or breaks so that water or other liquid can get in or out

stave in ()

to break something inwards

sunder (verb)

literary to break or separate something completely and violently

tear apart ()

to damage or destroy something completely by breaking it into pieces