break the news

idiom

: to tell (someone) bad news
We tried to break the news to her gently.

Examples of break the news in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Then there was the dilemma of how to break the news to his sixth grade daughter, who was a student in one of Mr. Paty’s classes but did not see the cartoons. Colette Davidson, The Christian Science Monitor, 26 Apr. 2024 Soon afterward, Iris said, an officer took him aside to break the news. Ames Alexander, Charlotte Observer, 16 Apr. 2024 The actors gets candid with PEOPLE about how sons Julian, 14, and Adrian, 12, have managed their dad's disease Aaron Lazar had no idea how to break the news to his two sons that he had been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Dave Quinn, Peoplemag, 7 Apr. 2024 Kelly had to break the news that the Führer’s own officers tried, on several occasions, to disloyally assassinate him. Benjamin Wallace-Wells, The New Yorker, 17 Mar. 2024 The Hollywood Reporter was the first to break the news, at which time DeMayo, who's been active on social media promoting the sequel to X-Men: The Animated Series, deleted his Instagram page. Nick Romano, EW.com, 12 Mar. 2024 Whelan flatlined, and Reyes had to break the news to Jet and the rest of the team. Christy Piña, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Jan. 2024 The day that happened, Monica Lozano went to her dad to break the news, expecting to hear his disappointment. Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 29 Dec. 2023 At the Cage, a dive bar and pool hall in Lewiston, the handful of patrons leaped from their seats as a local television station interrupted a sports broadcast to break the news that Card’s body had been discovered. Tom Bell, Washington Post, 28 Oct. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'break the news.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Dictionary Entries Near break the news

Cite this Entry

“Break the news.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/break%20the%20news. Accessed 10 May. 2024.

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