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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

break-ins plural

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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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• break-ins
  plural

Etymology

Origin of break-in

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

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

break-in break in break-ins

The break-in happened at about 02:00 BST on Saturday.

From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026

The victim was Hugging Face, a provider of open-source AI tools; it discovered the break-in early last week.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026

Martin died last October in a hospital following his arrest by Oakland police officers responding to reports of a break-in at a residence.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026

David Solomon, a 46-year-old who works in real estate, said he became invested in the mayoral race after break-in attempts at his home in Santa Monica Canyon.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 21, 2026

Not just about Watergate, but about other jobs that could be traced back to the White House—most dangerously, the Ellsberg break-in.

From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin

The test gives the AI software that has a known bug in it, shows it how to trigger the bug and invites the AI to break in.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026

Burglars tried to break in to the Barcelona home of Spain star Lamine Yamal on Wednesday, shortly after he helped La Roja reach their second World Cup final, police and media said.

From Barron's ● Jul. 15, 2026

In the first round against Damir Dzumhur, Fery dropped the opening set and trailed by a break in the second before surging back.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2026

“I’m telling clients this is the best summer-camp tax break in years, and most of them don’t know it exists yet,” said Jeff Judge, managing partner at Chesapeake Financial Planners in Forest Hill, Md.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 6, 2026

But Isabel and Nate were all the way on the other side of the apartment with my parents, taking a coffee break in the kitchen.

From "Auggie & Me" by R. J. Palacio

In Madrid, Karim Benzema, Rodrygo and Dani Carvajal are among the football stars to have suffered break-ins at their homes in recent years.

From Barron's ● Jul. 15, 2026

An epidemic of car break-ins led owners to post “No Radio” signs in their windows, and auto alarms blared indignantly at all hours.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 8, 2026

At the time, community leaders had asked Bass to increase security in the area following the deadly home invasion and a string of other break-ins.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 19, 2026

A police investigator told the BBC Griffiths, a British passport holder, was by himself, his room was locked from the inside, and there was no trace of any break-ins at the time of the death.

From BBC ● Feb. 20, 2026

The news was slow: a woman had had septuplets; bears, the New York Times reported with a straight face, were the main cause of car break-ins at Yosemite.

From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng

Related Words

• burglary
• robbery