break
verb transitive[L. frango, fregi, n casual; Heb. to break, to free or deliver, to separate]
pret. brokebroke or broken.
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To part or divide by force and violence, as a solid substance; to rend apart; as, to break a band; to break a thread or a cable.
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To burst or open by force. The fountains of the earth were broke open.
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To divide by piercing or penetrating; to burst forth; as, the light breaks through the clouds.
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To make breaches or gaps by battering, as in a wall.
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To destroy, crush, weaken, or impair, as the human body or constitution.
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To sink; to appall or subdue; as, to break the spirits, or the passions.
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To crush; to shatter; to dissipate the strength of, as of an army.
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To weaken, or impair, as the faculties.
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To tame; to train to obedience; to make tractable; as, to break a horse.
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To make bankrupt.
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To discard, dismiss or cashier; as, to break an officer.
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To crack, to part or divide, as the skin; to open, as an aposteme.
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To violate, as a contract or promise, either by a positive act contrary to the promise, or by neglect or non-fulfillment.
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To infringe or violate, as a law, or any moral obligation, either by a positive act or by an omission of what is required.
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To stop; to interrupt; to cause to cease; as, to break conversation; to break sleep.
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To intercept; to check; to lessen the force of; as, to break a fall, or a blow.
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To separate; to part; as, to break company of friendship.
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To dissolve any union; sometimes with off; as, to break off a connection.
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To cause to abandon; to reform or cause to reform; as, to break one of ill habits or practices.