break point

American

noun

Tennis.

a situation in which the receiving side, holding the advantage, can win the game by winning the next point.

break point British

noun

tennis a point which allows the receiving player to break the service of the server

"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

Example Sentences

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break point

In fact, he didn’t carve out a single break point until the match was more than two hours deep.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026

Osaka showed greater resistance early in the second set but, after failing to convert her only break point of the match, Rybakina soon seized control again.

From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026

The 2024 US Open semi-finalist appeared frustrated in the fourth game when he passed up a gift of a break point, firing a tired forehand into the net.

From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026

Jodar fought off two more match points before earning a break point that Fritz saved with another forehand winner.

From Barron's ● Aug. 3, 2026

His break point seemed to have no adequate antecedents.

From Human Error by Raymond F. Jones

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023