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• break-in
  break-in

  noun

  an illegal entry into a home, car, office, etc.
• break in
  break in

  verb

  (sometimes foll by on) to interrupt

break-in

American  

[breyk-in] / ˈbreɪkˌɪn /

noun

1. an illegal entry into a home, car, office, etc.

2. break-in period.

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break in British  

verb

1. (sometimes foll by on) to interrupt

2. (intr) to enter a house, etc, illegally, esp by force

3. (tr) to accustom (a person or animal) to normal duties or practice

4. (tr) to use or wear (shoes, new equipment, etc) until comfortable or running smoothly

5. (tr) to bring (new land) under cultivation

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noun

1. 1. the illegal entering of a building, esp by thieves

   2. ( as modifier )

      the break-in plans

break in Idioms  

1. Enter by force, as in The thieves broke in through the back door . [Mid-1500s] Also see break into .

2. Also, break in on . Interrupt or disturb something unexpectedly, as in His assistant broke in with the bad news just as we were ready to sign the agreement , or He broke in on our private talks . [Mid-1600s]

3. Train or instruct someone in a new job or enterprise, as in Every semester she had to break in a new teaching assistant . [Late 1700s]

4. Loosen or soften with use, as in It takes a while to break in a pair of new shoes .

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Etymology

Origin of break-in

First recorded in 1855–60; noun use of verb phrase break in

Example Sentences

He remembers studying Mid-Term Break in "the College" and how "the bell you heard every day was the same bell Heaney was writing about".

From BBC • Aug. 29, 2023

He is best known for another surfer movie, 1991’s Point Break, in which he plays Angelo Pappas, an FBI agent with a penchant for destruction.

From The Guardian • May 28, 2020

Shulman was spending Spring Break in Barcelona, Spain, where he likely contracted the virus -- but it wasn't until his flight home that he started feeling symptoms, he explained.

From Fox News • Mar. 15, 2020

Break in the basketball season at your local outdoor court before the cold sends you inside to squeakier, less-fresh-smelling courts.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 26, 2018

Break in the gate!" cried the voices and there were those of women among them shouting "Tovaristchi!

From The Vagrant Duke by Gibbs, George

Related Words

• interrupt
• steal