Break Down

Definition: Break Down

Break Down

Verb

1. Make a mathematical, chemical, or grammatical analysis of; break down into components or essential features; "analyze a specimen"; "analyze a sentence"; "analyze a chemical compound".

2. Make ineffective; "Martin Luther King tried to break down racial discrimination".

3. Lose control of one's emotions; "When she heard that she had not passed the exam, she lost it completely".

4. Stop operating or functioning; "The engine finally went"; "The car died on the road"; "The bus we travelled in broke down on the way to town"; "The coffee maker broke"; "The engine failed on the way to town"; "her eyesight went after the accident".

5. Separate into constituent elements or parts, as of chemical substances.

6. Fall apart; also used metaphorically: "Negociations broke down".

7. Cause to fall or collapse.

8. Collapse due to fatigue, an illness, or a sudden attack.

Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
 

Literature

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Synonyms: Break Down

Destruction

Eboulement, smash, havoc, delabrement, debacle; break down, break up, fall apart; prostration; desolation, bouleversement, wreck, wrack, shipwreck, cataclysm; washout.

Destroy; do away with, make away with; nullify; annual; sacrifice, demolish; tear up; overturn, overthrow, overwhelm; upset, subvert, put an end to; seal the doom of, do in, do for, dish, undo; break up, cut up; break down, cut down, pull down, mow down, blow down, beat down; suppress, quash, put down, do a job on; cut short, take off, blot out; dispel, dissipate, dissolve; consume.

Deterioration

Run to seed, go to seed, run to waste swale, sweal; lapse, be the worse for; sphacelate: break, break down; spring a leak, crack, start; shrivel; (contract); fade, go off, wither, molder, rot, rankle, decay, go bad; go to decay, fall into decay; " fall into the sear and yellow leaf", rust, crumble, shake; totter, totter to its fall; perish; die.

Failure

Limp, halt, hobble, titubate; fall, tumble; lose one's balance; fall to the ground, fall between two stools; flounder, falter, stick in the mud, run aground, split upon a rock; beat one's head against a stone wall, run one's head against a stone wall, knock one's head against a stone wall, dash one's head against a stone wall; break one's back; break down, sink, drown, founder, have the ground cut from under one; get into trouble, get into a mess, get into a scrape; come to grief; (adversity); go to the wall, go to the dogs, go to pot; lick the dust, bite the dust; be defeated; have the worst of it, lose the day, come off second best, lose; fall a prey to; succumb; (submit); not have a leg to stand on.

Shortcoming

Break down, stick in the mud, collapse, flat out, come to nothing; fall through, fall to the ground; cave in, end in smoke, miss the mark, fail; lose ground; miss stays.

Crosswords: Break Down

People break down into two groups when the experience something lucky. (Signs; writing credit: M. Night Shyamalan)

Break down! Damn man, my grandma's quicker and faster than you pansies! (Dazed and Confused; writing credit: Richard Linklater)

You'll come out or I'll break down the door! (Beauty and the Beast; writing credit: Roger Allers; Kelly Asbury)

Let's break down these boxes so they store easier! (Space Ghost Coast to Coast; writing credit: Ben Karlin)

Now, break down the key elements that make it a caste. (The Last Castle; writing credit: David Scarpa)

Did you think i'd break down and cry (One Day In Your Life; performing artist: Anastacia)

Till we both break down and cry (Sometimes When We Touch; performing artist: Dan Hill)

I break down and cry ("Walk on By"; performing artist: Dionne Warwick)

I'd probably break down and cry (Sweet Child O' Mine; performing artist: Guns N' Roses)

I tried all night not to break down and cry (Something To Believe In; performing artist: Poison)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Books

• Churches That Pray: How Prayer Can Help Revitalize Your Church and Break Down the Walls Between You and Your Community (The Prayer Warrior) (reference)

• Compelled to Control: Why Relationships Break Down and What Makes Them Well (reference)

• Don't Sweat the Small Stuff in Love: Simple Ways to Nuture and Strenghten Your Relationships While Avoiding the Habits That Break Down Your Loving co (reference)

• Hindu God, Christian God: How Reason Helps Break Down the Boundaries Between Religions (reference)

• Twenty-Five Great Quotes On Taking Action -- Break Down The Hamlet Syndrome! [DOWNLOAD: PDF] (reference)

  (more book examples)

Theater & Movies

• WWE - Chris Jericho - Break Down the Walls (reference)

  (more DVD examples; more video examples)

Music

• Break Down (reference)

• Break Down Laughing (reference)

• Break Down the Walls [ORIGINAL RECORDING REMASTERED] (reference)

  (more classical music examples; more popular music examples)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

View of the foundry department breaker house. Photograph by Jet Lowe, 1979. (Reproduction Number: HAER, MONT, 12-ANAC.V,1-4) The copper mining town of Anaconda is known for the manufacture and sale of hardware, machinery, and supplies for mining companies. It is also known for its precast building parts and ornaments, such as storefronts and lampposts, made from recycled scrap iron. The Anaconda Reduction Department's breaker house shown here was built around 1900 to break down scrap iron before it was shipped to the furnace for melting and eventual reuse. Credit: Library of Congress.

Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits.

For those who had seen me made such wonderful reports, that the people were ready to break down the doors to come in.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Health

CYP2D6 also helps break down certain other drugs. (references)

The stones break down into sand-like particles and are easily passed through the urinary tract in the urine. (references)

This unusual diet, called the ketogenic diet, causes the body to break down fats instead of carbohydrates to survive. (references)

Business

System administrators in financial institutions and the government would not dare use pirated software for fear that it might break down and for the necessity that the best software run on their system. (references)

This project was funded by the central government about 5 years ago, but there has been a lot of problems concerning the maintenance of these because they break down often and BMTA do not have enough trained mechanics to deal with this. Moreover the Petroleum Authority of Thailand (PTT) is unable to provide the quality of natural gas needed to run these buses. (references)

Civil Liberties

Ukraine

In July unknown assailants attempted to break down the door of Valentyna Vasylchenko, a reporter for the Cherkasy newspaper Antenna. (references)

Economic History

Brazil

Labor courts also have the power to impose an agreement on employers and unions if negotiations break down and either side appeals to the court system. (references)

Trinidad and Tobago

The NAR began to break down when the Indian component withdrew in 1988. Basdeo Panday, leader of the old United Labor Front (ULF), formed the new opposition with the UNC. (references)

Human Rights

Russia

Guards reportedly severely discipline prisoners to break down resistance; at times guards humiliated, beat, and starved prisoners. (references)

Women

Portugal

Its success demonstrates an increased public awareness, which reportedly is helping to break down the social reluctance to report cases of domestic violence. (references)

Worker Rights

Brazil

The normative power of the labor justice system, which may set wages and working conditions when negotiations break down and either party appeals to labor courts, continues to weaken collective bargaining. (references)

Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Expression using "break down": To break down. Additional references.

Afrikaans

afspring (break, come to nothing, jump, jump off, leap, leap down). (various references)

Albanian

bie (abate, attach, attack, bang out, bite, blow over, bring, burn down, chime, come a cropper, come down, crash, crash down, crumple, cut, decline, descend, devolve, drop, fall, fall off, fall on, finger, flake off, flop, give, go, go down, hoot, pitch, play, plunge, plunk, recede, sink, strike, subside, throw down, tumble), zbërthej (analyse, analyze, crack, decompose, demount, diffract, disarticulate, disassemble, disintegrate, dismantle, dismount, disperse, dissolve, Plumb, pull apart, puzzle out, resolve, take to pieces, unbuckle, unbutton, undo, unfasten, unlock, unnail), ngec (conk out, flounder, fob off, foist, foul, hesitate, hitch, jam, Lodge, pack up, plant, run down, seize, throw, thrust), ndaloj (arrest, balk, ban, bar, baulk, block, cease, challenge, close down, come to a halt, debar, detain, disallow, disqualify, enjoin, estop, forbid, halt, impede, inhibit, interdict, negative, nip, prevent, prohibit, proscribe, pull up, stall, stop, tackle, withhold), analizoj (analyse, analyze, assay, dissect, sift, survey, take stock, test). (various references)

Arabic 

‏تحلل (disintegration, molder, moldiness, moulder, mouldiness, taint), ‏تدهور (breakdown, crumble, decadence, decay, deteriorate, deterioration, drop, go to pot, go to the bad, impairment, retrogradation, run to seed, sour, suffer, tumble), ‏إنهار (cave, collapse, come down, crack, crash, crock, crumple, drop, fall, fall in, founder, go under, perish, plummet, ruin, run down, sink, slough, slump, tumble, tumble down), ‏دمر (annihilate, blast, demolish, desolate, destroy, devastate, flatten, immolate, overthrow, prey, pull down, pulverize, ravage, ruin, smash, subvert, unbuild, wrack, wreck). (various references)

Bulgarian 

събарям (bowl over, bring down, demolish, dismantle, fell, fling, fling down, grass, kick over, knock down, knock off, lay low, overthrow, prostrate, pull down, push down, push over, rase, raze, ride down, run down, subvert, tear down, throw down), смекчавам (chastise, correct, cushion, extenuate, humanize, lighten, melt, mince, mitigate, moderate, modify, mollify, palliate, qualify, quiet, retouch, season, smooth out, soften, subdue, tame, temper, turn, water down), руша (dilapidate, wear away, weather), разлагам (analyse, analyze, contaminate, decompose, degrade, disintegrate, dissolve, molder, putrefy, resolve, scan), разбивам (agitate, beat, beat up, blank, blast, blight, break, break in pieces, break to pieces, burst open, dash, deflate, disrupt, hack, kick in, mill, overwhelm, pry open, scatter, shatter, smash, smash in, smash up, split off, stamp, whip, whip up, wreck), загубвам самообладание (lose one's head), анализирам (analyse, analyze, criticize, decompose, dissect, process, resolve), провалям се (collapse, come to grief, fail, fall through, fizzle out, fold, go awry, go phut, go to pot, go wrong, misfire, slump, sour, tumble down), повреждам се (be damaged, flaw, get out of order, go wrong). (various references)

Chinese 

潰 (be dispersed), 分解 (decompose, resolve). (various references)

Czech

zlomit (break, grind away, smash), zhroucení (breakdown, collapse), vyrazit (batter, get off, imprint, set off, set out, smash down, smash in, spurt, stamp out, start, storm), strhnout (break, carry away, demolish, pull down, raze, strip, tear away, tear down, tear off), selhat (abort, backfire, come to nothing, fail, fall down on the job, fizzle out, give out, go wrong, lapse, miscarry, misfire), rozepsat, havarovat (break, crash, have a crash). (various references)

Danish

sammenfalden (collapse), kollaps (collapse), kollaberen (collapse). (various references)

Dutch

zwak worden (collapse), vervallen (be on the decline, decline, go downhill, go off, recede), stukgaan (break), slopen (consume, demolish, pull down, take down, use up), onklaar raken (to break down, to foul, to get out of order), neerhalen (demolish, lower, pull down, take down), kapot gaan, collapsus (breakdown, collapse), collaberen (collapse), averý oplopen (suffer damage), averý krýgen (suffer damage), afspringen (come to nothing, jump off, leap down), afbreken (break, break off, cry down, cut, cut a connection, cut up, demolish, divide, pick, pluck, pull down, pull to pieces, run down, separate, share, stop, take down, tear off, write down). (various references)

Esperanto

ne efektiviĝi (come to nothing), malkonstrui (demolish, pull down, take down), difektiĝi, averii (suffer damage). (various references)

Finnish

joutua epäkuntoon (get out of gear, get out of order, go wrong). (various references)

French

démolir (break up). (various references)

Frisian

oergean (come to nothing), ôfbrekke (break, break off, demolish, interrupt, pick, pluck, pull down, stop, take down, tear off). (various references)

German

kaputtgehen (be ruined, break, break up, bust, come apart, come to pieces, croak, die off, fold up, get broken, go, go bust, go kaput, go on the rocks, go phut, go to pot, kick the bucket, tear, to get broken, wear, wear out), abreißen (break off, demolish, have down, level, pick, pluck, pull down, pull off, rip down, rip off, snap out, strip off, take down, tear away, tear off, to snap out, to tear off, yank off), aufbrechen (break, break into, break open, break up, burst open, decamp, force, force open, open, prize off, pry, sally, set off, set out, start, start off, start out, to decamp, to sally), aufgliedern (analyse, analyze, categorize, dissect, divide, itemize, paragraph, split up, subdivide, to dissect, to subdivide, unbundle), aufschlüsseln (classify, unbundle), aufschließen (catch up, close up, develop, elucidate, open, open up, unlock), aufteilen (apportion, carve up, divide, divide out, divide up, divvy up, lay out, parcel, parcel out, partition, share out, slice up, split, split up, to apportion, to split), ausfallen (assault, attack, be canceled, be lost, be omitted, be precipitated, drop out, fail, fall out, lunge, retire, thrust, to fall out), einbrechen (break in, break into, break through, burglarize, burgle, cave in, fall, fall in, set in), abbauen (abolish, burn up, cut back, decompose, dismantle, mine, reduce, shed, strike, take down, to abolish, to dismantle, to slash, unship, work, work out), einstoßen (knock down, push in), zusammenbrechen (cave in, collapse, come to a standstill, crash, crumble, fail, fall apart, give way, to break down, to collapse), kollabieren (collapse), scheitern (be defeated, be wrecked, breakdown, defeat, fail, failure, fall through, falling through, founder, foundering, go under, miscarry, stranding, to fail, to miscarry, wrecking), sich zerlegen, umbrechen (break up, lay out), verderben (abase, addle, adulterate, bane, banes, barbarize, become corrupted, become depraved, become ruined, become spoiled, blight, bribe, contaminate, corrupt, damage, debauch, deprave, destroy, disaster, doom, go bad, go off, going off, infect, injure, kill, Mar, molder, perdition, perditions, pervert, pollute, pollution, put off, ruin, ruination, ruining, spoil, spoiling, spoilt, taint, to barbarize, to debauch, to deprave, to spoil, to taint, undoing, vitiate, vitiation, wreck), versagen (be a failure, breakdown, defection, deny, fail, failing, failure, flop, give out, go, malfunction, refuse, reject, to break down, to flop, withhold), zerbrechen (be destroyed, break, break into pieces, breakup, burst, collapse, crack up, destroy, disrupt, fracture, fragment, rupture, sever, shatter, smash, snap, to break to pieces, to break up), zerlegen (analyse, analyze, carve, carve up, cut up, decompose, depacketize, dismantle, disperse, dissect, divide, joint, quarter, quartering, reduce, separate, share, strip down, take apart, take down, take to pieces, to analyse, to carve, to decompose, to depacketize, to disassemble, to disjoint, to dismember, to disperse), einrennen (batter down, batter in, force open, to force open). (various references)

Greek 

κατάρρευση (collapse, debacle), σπάζομαι, ζωϊκή εξάντλησις (collapse). (various references)

Hebrew 

לקלקל (blight, bungle, foul up, louse, muff, spoil, vitiate), לפרט (detail, itemize, particularize, specify, spell out), ל�"תמוטט (collapse, come down, founder, go to pieces, topple), ל�"פרי�" לחלקים (decompose). (various references)

Hungarian

letörik (to break away, to break down, to chip, to come away), letör (dampen, to break away, to break down, to chip, to pull down, to put down, to silence). (various references)

Indonesian

menjebol (break through, penetrate). (various references)

Italian

indebolire (depress, enervations, enfeeble, etiolate, impair, impoverish, undermine, weaken, weaknesses), guastarsi (addle, fester, sour, spoil, warp), demolire (abate, break up, demolish, disestablish, pull, pull apart, pull down, scrap, shake, shoot down, take, take down, tear down), cadere in collasso (collapse), abbattere (bowl over, break, cut down, deject, demolish, down, fall, fell, flatten, knock down, lay, lose heart, overthrow, put down, put to sleep, rase, raze, shoot down, smash down, smash in, throw). (various references)

Japanese Kanji 

�"� � (abolish, defeat). (various references)

Japanese Katakana 

� は (abolish, defeat). (various references)

Manx

brishey sheese (analyse, analysis). (various references)

Papiamen

basha abou (demolish, pull down, take down). (various references)

Pig Latin

eakbray ownday

Portuguese

estragar‐se, deteriorar‐se, desmembrar (disjoint, dismember, divide, separate, share), demolir (demolish, destroy, dilapidate, level, pull down, pulverize, quash, rase, raze, unbuild, wrack, wreck), danificar‐se, colapso (collapse, cracker, debacle, drop, fit), alterar‐se. (various references)

Romanian

panã (arrow, chock, cleat, cotter, failure, feather, Gib, injury, jaw, peg, pen, pick, pinion, plug, plume, puncture, quill, quill pen, Spike, wedge), avarie (average, casualty, damage, failure, fault, injury, wreck), cãdere (authority, becomingness, collapse, cropper, debacle, destruction, downfall, drop, failure, fall, labefaction, lapse, plump, rot, spill, Turkey), dãrâma (annihilate, batter, blight, crack, crumble, crush, demolish, destroy, frustrate, pull down, raze, ruin, shatter, throw down, wreck), dans al negrilor, declin brusc, demola (demolish, destroy, knock down, pull down, raze, take down), dilua bãuturi alcoolice, eşua (abort, beach, come down, drop through, fail, fall, founder, ground, miscarry, pile up, run aground, run ashore, strand), epuizare (depletion, exhaustion, fag, languor, weariness), extenuare (distress), frânge (break, defeat, fracture, snap), accident (accidence, accident, accidental, case, catastrophe, contingency, disaster, event, fortuity, happening, misadventure, misfortune, occasionality, slip, wreck), nereuşitã (fail, failing, failure, lame duck, miscarriage, Miss, naught, phlizz, rottenness), surmenaj (over-exertion, overworking), prãbuşi, prãbuşire (break, break up, burst up, collapse, crack up, crash, debacle, decay, downfall, drop, fall, labefaction), pråbuşi (demolish, pull down, take down), rãmâne în panã, ruina sãnãtatea cuiva (break), ruinare a sãnãtãţii, rupere (alienation, breakage, laceration, rent, rupture, split, tearing), se întrerupe (break off, discontinue, drop, halt, intermit, interrupt), se epuiza (consume, give out, wear out), se tulbura (fluster), sfârşealã (exhaustion, failure, flaccidity, flagging, weakness, weariness), slãbi curajul cuiva, izbucni în plâns (burst out crying). (various references)

Russian 

сломаться, сломать (bring down, fracture), сбить (bowl over), разрушиться, разрушить. (various references)

Serbo-Croatian

razbiti (break, bust up, crack, crash, overwhelm, shatter, smash), provaliti (break into, burst in, fall in, lance), otkazati (call off, cancel, denounce), analizirati (analyze, anatomize). (various references)

Spanish

derribar (batter down, blow down, bring down, demolish, fell, floor, knock down, knock over, lay, lay out, level, overthrow, pull down, take down, throw, topple, upset), demoler (demolish, knock down, pull down, snap out, take down, tear off). (various references)

Swedish

bryta ihop, slopa (abolish, demolish, dismantle, pull down, reject, take down). (various references)

Turkish

bozulmak (addle, break up, bust, collapse, conk, decay, decline, deteriorate, disrupt, dwindle, ebb, fail, get out of hand, get out of order, go bad, go haywire, go off, go sour, go under, go wrong, lose face, perish, retrograde, retrogress, rot, sour, spoil, stale, taint, turn, turn sour, upset), bozmak (abash, abolish, adulterate, affect, alloy, annihilate, annul, baffle, ball up, barbarize, bedevil, blemish, botch, break, break off, break on, bugger, bugger up, bust, cash, change, circumvent, confound, confuse, contaminate, corrupt, cross, damage, debase, debauch, decay, declare off, deface, defile, destroy, deteriorate, disappoint, disarray, discolor, discolour, discomfit, discomfort, discompose, discountenance, dislocate, dismount, disorder, disrupt, dissolve, distort, disturb, downgrade, emasculate, embarrass, embroil, exchange, explode, fluff, foil, foul, foul up, fumble, garble, goof, goof up, gum up, Harry, impair, indispose, infect, infringe, lead astray, leaven, mangle, Mar, mess, murder, muss, mutilate, obliterate, pervert, pollute, put out, put out of action, put to shame, quash, queer, rattle, reverse, rot, ruffle, ruin, scotch, scupper, shatter, sour, spoil, stymie, taint, thwart, tousle, tumble, undo, unmake, upset, violate, vitiate, whittle away, whittle down, whittle off, wreck), baskıya dayanamamak, bölmek (carve up, cleave, divide, divvy, divvy up, overslaugh, parcel, parcel out, partition, portion, reduce, rend, section, segment, separate, sever, share, slice, split), yıkmak (batter down, blast, blow down, confound, dash, demolish, destroy, do for, drag down, explode, extinguish, housebreak, knock down, knock over, level, overthrow, pull dawn, puncture, ravage, ruin, shatter, shoot down, split, subvert, take down, unbuild), yıkılmak (cave, cave in, collapse, come down, crack up, crumble, drop down, fall, fall down, fall over, fall to pieces, founder, go to pieces, go to ruin, shipwreck, tumble, tumble down, wither away), kırmak (bear down, blight, breach, break, bust, chill, chop, crack, cut, dampen, discount, fracture, freeze, give offence, give offense, hurt, lacerate, offend, outrage, pique, put off, put smb.'s nose out of joint, quench, reduce, refract, Rive, ruffle smb.'s feelings, rupture, set up, shatter, skip, snap, snap off, split, stave in, sting, touch, vanquish), duygularını kontrol edememek. (various references)

Turkmen 

maяrylmak (crack up, strain oneself), haraplamak (spoil). (various references)

Ukrainian

розруха (break up), розподіл (administration, allocation, allotment, assignment, classification, dealing, dispensation, distribution, division, ordering, ordonnance, partition), вийти з ладу, зруйнувати (puncture), зламати (bear down, bring down, bust), аварія (accident, average, casualty, derailment, emergency, smash up, wreck), аналіз (analysis, canvass, determination, evaluation), пробивання, порушення руху, погіршуватися (degenerate, degrade, disimprove, dwindle, slacken), повний занепад сил. (various references)

arefaciens, arefaciet, arefacta, arefactae, arefactum, arefecit. (various references)

debriser. (various references)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams

Direct Anagrams: breakdown.

-1 letter: beadwork, rawboned.

-2 letters: bandore, broaden, browned.

-3 letters: awoken, bander, banked, banker, barked, bonder, bonked, borane, braked, broken, browed, danker, darken, debark, downer, knower, narked, onward, ranked, redowa, roband, wander, warden, warked, warned, wonder, worked.

-4 letters: abode, adobe, adore, adorn, adown, anode, ardeb, awned, awoke, baked, baker, baned, barde, bared, baron, beano, beard, board, boned.

+1 letter: breakdowns.