break
/ˈbɹeɪk/
verbnoun
Core
1.v.terminate
“She interrupted her pregnancy”
2.v.become separated into pieces or fragments
“The figurine broke”
3.v.render inoperable or ineffective
“You broke the alarm clock when you took it apart!”
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break and crack share a recorded sense, so the question is not what they mean but which one fits. break means “terminate”. crack means “become fractured; break or crack on the surface only”. break is the more common of the two in everyday English.
/ˈbɹeɪk/
1.v.terminate
“She interrupted her pregnancy”
2.v.become separated into pieces or fragments
“The figurine broke”
3.v.render inoperable or ineffective
“You broke the alarm clock when you took it apart!”
/ˈkɹæk/
1.v.become fractured; break or crack on the surface only
“The glass cracked when it was heated”
2.v.make a very sharp explosive sound
“His gun cracked”
3.v.make a sharp sound
“his fingers snapped”
| break | crack | |
|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation | /ˈbɹeɪk/ | /ˈkɹæk/ |
| Said | brayk | krak |
| Syllables | 1 | 1 |
| Letters | 5 | 5 |
| Parts of speech | verb, noun | verb, noun, adjective |
| Senses | 75 | 24 |
| How common | Core | Common |
| Synonyms | interrupt | check, break |
Full entry for break · Full entry for crack · More comparisons