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definitions

breach

[breech]
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noun
  1. the act or a result of breaking; break or rupture.
  2. an infraction or violation, as of a law, trust, faith, or promise.
  3. a gap made in a wall, fortification, line of soldiers, etc.; rift; fissure.
  4. a severance of friendly relations.
  5. the leap of a whale above the surface of the water.
  6. Archaic. the breaking of waves; the dashing of surf.
  7. Obsolete. wound1.
verb (used with object)
  1. to make a breach or opening in.
  2. to break or act contrary to (a law, promise, etc.).
verb (used without object)
  1. (of a whale) to leap partly or completely out of the water, head first, and land on the back or belly with a resounding splash.

Origin of breach

before 1000; Middle English breche, Old English bræc breaking; see break
Related formsbreach·er, nounnon·breach, nounnon·breach·ing, adjectiveun·breached, adjective
Can be confusedbreach breech

Synonyms for breach

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1. fracture. 3. crack, rent, opening. 4. alienation, split, rift, schism, separation; dissension.

Synonym study

2. Breach, infraction, violation, transgression all denote in some way the breaking of a rule or law or the upsetting of a normal and desired state. Breach is used infrequently in reference to laws or rules, more often in connection with desirable conditions or states of affairs: a breach of the peace, of good manners, of courtesy. Infraction most often refers to clearly formulated rules or laws: an infraction of the criminal code, of university regulations, of a labor contract. Violation, a stronger term than either of the preceding two, often suggests intentional, even forceful or aggressive, refusal to obey the law or to respect the rights of others: repeated violations of parking regulations; a human rights violation. Transgression, with its root sense of “a stepping across (of a boundary of some sort),” applies to any behavior that exceeds the limits imposed by a law, especially a moral law, a commandment, or an order; it often implies sinful behavior: a serious transgression of social customs, of God's commandments.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for breached

contravene, intrude, disobey, impose, trespass, encroach, offend, breach, meddle, raid, violate, plunder, pillage, ravage, occupy, storm, infect, penetrate, loot, infest

Examples from the Web for breached

Contemporary Examples of breached

Historical Examples of breached

British Dictionary definitions for breached

breach

noun
  1. a crack, break, or rupture
  2. a breaking, infringement, or violation of a promise, obligation, etc
  3. any severance or separationthere was a breach between the two factions of the party
  4. a gap in an enemy's fortifications or line of defence created by bombardment or attack
  5. the act of a whale in breaking clear of the water
  6. the breaking of sea waves on a shore or rock
  7. an obsolete word for wound 1
verb
  1. (tr) to break through or make an opening, hole, or incursion in
  2. (tr) to break a promise, law, etc
  3. (intr) (of a whale) to break clear of the water

Word Origin for breach

Old English bræc; influenced by Old French brèche, from Old High German brecha, from brechan to break
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
Word Origin and History for breached

breach

n.

Old English bryce "breach, fracture, a breaking," from brecan (see break), influenced by Old French breche "breach, opening, gap," from Frankish; both from Proto-Germanic *brecho, *bræko "broken," from PIE root *bhreg- "to break" (see fraction). Figurative sense of "a breaking of rules, etc." was in Old English Breach of contract is at least from 1660s.

breach

v.

1570s, from breach (n.). Related: Breached; breaching.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper