breakdancer

noun

break·​danc·​er ˈbrāk-ˌdan(t)-sər 

variants or break dancer or less commonly break-dancer

plural breakdancers or break dancers also break-dancers

: someone who breakdances

… a new hip-hop dance work by the breakdancer and choreographer Anne Nguyen that involves 20 New York City street dancers in the Bronx and Times Square.

—Joshua Barone

… "Wild Style," a 1983 film that was hailed as the first hip-hop movie and featured real-life graffiti writers, rappers and break dancers in and around the Bronx.

—Julianne McShane

… [Emmanuel Macron] watched a performance of break-dancers who hope to compete in the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

—Jeffrey Schaeffer

Acrobatic dancers known as b-boys, b-girls, and breakers (the media eventually labeled them as breakdancers, a term still in wide circulation today) flocked to DJ Kool Herc's parties …

—Jonathan Abrams

called also breaker

Examples of breakdancer in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Elevate your typical tennis player costume with palpable tension, sustained eye contact and lots left unsaid. 10 of 12 Raygun The Australian breakdancer certainly left an impression at the 2024 Paris Olympics, despite scoring 0 points. —Chiara Kim, People.com, 23 Oct. 2024

Watching Brady work in comparison with the Titans’ top two quarterbacks – starter Marcus Mariota and backup Ryan Tannehill — was like watching Mikhail Baryshnikov on one stage and that Australian breakdancer on the other. —Joe Rexrode, The Athletic, 16 Aug. 2024

The Australian breakdancer — who went viral during the 2024 Paris Olympics for her controversial routine — shed her polo uniform and went glam in a cover shoot for a new issue of Australian magazine Stellar. —Natasha Dye, People.com, 24 Oct. 2024

High-, mid- and low-top versions of the Adidas Jabbar have all released—with the lows being particularly popular among b-boys (or breakdancers). —Ian Servantes For Footwear News, Robb Report, 16 Oct. 2024

By my estimation, Rayne Beau is quickly approaching breakdancer Raygun and pop star Chappell Roan in sheer tonnage of 2024 Internet writing. —Frederick Dreier, Outside Online, 1 Oct. 2024

Australian olympic breakdancer, Raygun, has made her way to The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon! —Esther Kang, Peoplemag, 14 Aug. 2024

The Australian breakdancer, real name Rachel Gunn, who had a viral performance in the Olympics this summer in a green tracksuit. CatNap: A royal purple cat who is a character from Poppy Playtime, the indie horror video game series. —Simmone Shah, TIME, 15 Oct. 2024

In an interview with UPI, clinical professor and concussion specialist Dr. Angela Lumba-Brown suggested that breakdancers take preventative measures to avoid overuse injuries. —Raven Brunner, People.com, 14 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1982, in the meaning defined above