to change (as a secret message) from code into ordinary language
Alan Turing and the Bletchley Park mathematicians broke the Enigma code being used by the Nazis
a momentary halt in an activity
there was a brief break after the first movement as the doors to the concert hall were opened and the latecomers were allowed in
a favorable combination of circumstances, time, and place
in classic fashion, her big break came when, as an understudy, she took over for an ailing star
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Recent Examples of breaks
Verb
Virgo has Steal Away begin as a feminist drama that eventually breaks conventions by morphing into something of a horror film, with even a pinch of the supernatural.—Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 6 Sep. 2025 The campaign breaks Thursday in tandem with the retail drop of the Passepartout collection for fall 2025, strong on Lurex jersey dresses and sweaters with a labyrinth motif that gives an animal-print vibe.—Miles Socha, Footwear News, 4 Sep. 2025 Nash-Betts breaks the who's who down for us.—Lauren Huff, Entertainment Weekly, 4 Sep. 2025 Wild animal breaks into California home, helps himself to multiple meals.—FOXNews.com, 4 Sep. 2025 This fragmentation breaks Ethereum’s original composability and interoperability, as DEXs on one layer-2 cannot seamlessly interact with others, reducing the ability of decentralized applications (DApps) to operate seamlessly across the Ethereum ecosystem.—Sean Lee, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025 If 10-year-old Christian Savitskie breaks a leg, his dad could lose his job.—Darcie Moran, Freep.com, 2 Sep. 2025 The Annunciation Church attack breaks a boundary - namely, that children should be spared from society's typical ills.—Marc Ramirez, USA Today, 29 Aug. 2025 An amendment was tabled by Texas House Republican Steve Toth, and approved, raising the fine on any institution that breaks the law to an initial $25,000 followed by $125,000 for any additional breaches.—James Bickerton, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Aug. 2025
Noun
Potential breaks for employers Other changes that would allow workers to set aside more of their income on a pre-tax basis in flexible spending accounts for care expenses, from $5,000 to $7,500, are also likely to provide the largest benefits to higher income workers.—David Lightman, Sacbee.com, 5 Sep. 2025 That means more snack breaks during your study sessions.—Mariyam Muhammad, Cincinnati Enquirer, 5 Sep. 2025 The group checked if workers earned enough to support a family; whether benefits like paid leave and breastfeeding breaks were available; and if workers could organize without fear of retaliation.—Angela Rodriguez, Miami Herald, 4 Sep. 2025 The monitors helped study participants needs such as food and restroom breaks, but the monitors were instructed not to provide any therapy to avoid influencing the study's results.—Ken Alltucker, USA Today, 4 Sep. 2025 Take frequent breaks to move your legs and get your blood flowing.—Sarah Hudgens, Health, 4 Sep. 2025 Sydney, Australia Anchored by icons like the Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge, Sydney unfolds between surf breaks and skyline silhouettes.—Lewis Nunn, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025 This is only one of the genre’s many implicit rules that HBO’s Task breaks.—Judy Berman, Time, 28 Aug. 2025 The fugitive mood breaks when the cocaine runs out and Tamsin must wait a day for Ekow to make his delivery.—Literary Hub, 28 Aug. 2025
This not only reinforces clarity, but also reduces the reliance on employees having to scribble notes word for word to decode later.
—
Dr. Diane Hamilton,
Forbes.com,
6 Sep. 2025
But prorating three years of player profits down to 12 months, as UEFA’s rule does, reduces the immediate efficacy of successful trading in the market, the very strategy that poorer clubs increasingly rely on to climb the ladder.
Fired from elite law firm Tinley Britt after an argument with his boss (John Slattery), Rudy barely pauses for breath before launching into righteous combat.
—
Graham Hillard,
The Washington Examiner,
5 Sep. 2025
Many of us are taught from childhood that pauses in conversation are awkward, even dangerous, and that love must constantly be proven through words.
Any member who violates the ban would need to pay a fee equal to 10% of the value of the covered investment, and get rid of any profits from that investment.
—
Emily Wilkins,
CNBC,
3 Sep. 2025
In times of war, it is simply forbidden to say anything that violates the general consensus—and the consensus regarding the war is sacred and immutable.
—
Uriel Kon
September 2,
Literary Hub,
2 Sep. 2025
Tune in for short episodes every Wednesday and Saturday as Grumpy answers reader questions, solves seasonal conundrums, and provides need-to-know advice for gardeners with his very Grumpy sense of humor.
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