break a leg

Idioms  

1. Fracture one or more leg bones, as in She fell down the stairs and broke her leg in two places . [c. a.d. 1000]

2. Good luck! as in Play well, Rob—break a leg! The origin of this imperative to a performer about to go onstage is unclear; it may have been a translation of the German Hals und Beinbruch (“Break your neck and leg”), also of unknown origin. Equally mysterious is the Italian equivalent, In bocca di lupe , “Into the mouth of the wolf.” [c. 1900]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

break a leg

He moved up into motor racing in 1974, first into Formula Ford and then Formula 3, only to suffer a nasty accident at Mallory Park in 1976 and badly break a leg.

From BBC ● Mar. 20, 2025

"I think I took it a little too literally when they said, 'Go to Milwaukee and break a leg.'"

From Reuters ● Aug. 24, 2023

So whose bright idea was it to tell Braves pitcher Charlie Morton to break a leg before Game 1?

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 29, 2021

Let’s say you’re a woman in your mid-50s, or perhaps a man in your early 70s, and you break a leg or a hip after falling from a six-foot ladder.

From New York Times ● Sep. 27, 2021

“What? You only say that in the theater...before a show...not before a run. If you say break a leg before a run, then someone could actually...oh hi,” I say, looking up toward James.

From "Watch Us Rise" by Renée Watson and Ellen Hagan