breakneck

[ breyk-nek ]
See synonyms for breakneck on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. reckless or dangerous, especially because of excessive speed; hazardous: He raced through the streets at breakneck speed.

Origin of breakneck

1
First recorded in 1555–65; break + neck

Words Nearby breakneck

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use breakneck in a sentence

  • It was really a breakneck sort of excursion, which is very rarely made even by the officers, and certainly never by ladies.

  • This coach, of course, traveled by relays, and at what was then considered breakneck speed.

  • With a grin the cabman touched his cap, the door banged, and the hansom set off as if the fare were in a breakneck hurry.

    The Weight of the Crown | Fred M. White
  • Mounted orderlies were dashing at breakneck speed between the Presidio and the city.

    Ancestors | Gertrude Atherton
  • Sara Lee heard his car going at its usual breakneck speed up the street, and went to the door.

    The Amazing Interlude | Mary Roberts Rinehart

British Dictionary definitions for breakneck

breakneck

/ (ˈbreɪkˌnɛk) /


adjective
  1. (prenominal) (of speed, pace, etc) excessive and dangerous

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012