break·away
ˈbrā-kə-ˌwā 
1
a
: one that breaks away
b
: a departure from or rejection of something (such as a group or tradition)
2
a
: a play (as in hockey) in which an offensive player breaks free of the defenders and rushes toward the goal
b
: a sudden acceleration by one or more bicyclists pulling away from the pack in a race
3
: an object made to shatter or collapse under pressure or impact
1
: favoring independence from an affiliation : seceding
a breakaway faction formed a new party
2
: made to break, shatter, or bend easily
breakaway road signs for highway safety
3
a
: of, relating to, or resulting from a breakaway
a breakaway goal
b
: allowing or having an ability to execute a breakaway
breakaway speed
broke away; broken away; breaking away; breaks away
1
: to detach oneself especially from a group : get away
2
: to depart from former or accustomed ways
3
: to pull away with a burst of speed
Examples of breakaway in a Sentence
Adjective
A breakaway faction formed a new party.
Recent Examples on the Web
Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 11 Oct. 2024
Bedard and Hall raised the tension in the building on breakaway chances, but Ingram stopped them both.
—Phil Thompson, Chicago Tribune, 9 Oct. 2024
Alexander Gabuev, Foreign Affairs, 13 Mar. 2023
In 2008, Russia and Georgia went to war over the breakaway Georgian province of South Ossetia.
—Laura King, Los Angeles Times, 28 May 2024
Scott Phillips, Forbes, 16 Oct. 2024
After about 2 ½ minutes, the first stage of the Falcon 9 rocket quit firing and broke away from the rocket’s second stage.
—Jackie Wattles, CNN, 28 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for breakaway 
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Noun
Alex Tuch converted his own rebound on a shorthanded breakaway with 3:05 left in the second period, and Buffalo dropped to 0-3 after opening the season with two losses to New Jersey in Prague last weekend.
—Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 11 Oct. 2024
Bedard and Hall raised the tension in the building on breakaway chances, but Ingram stopped them both.
—Phil Thompson, Chicago Tribune, 9 Oct. 2024
Adjective
Furthermore, Moscow’s various calls for respect of the UN Charter would have been taken more seriously had Russia itself not unilaterally recognized the breakaway Georgian regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia in 2008, or annexed Crimea and instigated a war in Ukraine’s Donbas region in 2014.
—Alexander Gabuev, Foreign Affairs, 13 Mar. 2023
In 2008, Russia and Georgia went to war over the breakaway Georgian province of South Ossetia.
—Laura King, Los Angeles Times, 28 May 2024
Verb
One of the crew members breaks away from his co-workers (never a good idea in a horror film) and comes across a collection of therapy session tapes that are creepy beyond words.
—Scott Phillips, Forbes, 16 Oct. 2024
After about 2 ½ minutes, the first stage of the Falcon 9 rocket quit firing and broke away from the rocket’s second stage.
—Jackie Wattles, CNN, 28 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for breakaway
Dictionary Entries Near breakaway
Cite this Entry
“Breakaway.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/breakaway. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.
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