break the ice

Cultural  

1. To remove the tension at a first meeting, at the opening of a party, etc.: “That joke really broke the ice at the conference; we all relaxed afterward.”

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break the ice Idioms  

1. Make a start, pave the way, as in Newton's theories broke the ice for modern physics . This idiom alludes to breaking ice in a channel so that a ship can pass. [Early 1600s] Also see break ground .

2. Relax a tense or very formal situation, as in Someone at the conference table will have to break the ice . [Early 1600s]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

break the ice

Over two decades later, in February 1972, then US president Richard Nixon flew to China to break the ice.

From Barron's ● May 15, 2026

Behind closed doors, Trump treats Xi with a deference he rarely extends to other leaders, according to people familiar with their meetings, replacing jokes intended to break the ice with compliments.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 13, 2026

Ms Hewitt, from Cambridgeshire, said she always asked for a smaller speculum to be used and for a double appointment to "break the ice" with the nurse.

From BBC ● Jan. 19, 2025

Conversation flowed effortlessly at our table, so much so that we didn’t even pull out the question game that Timeleft provides to help break the ice.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 17, 2024

Joe would break the ice in all the puddles while his old man, smoking a cigarette, patiently waited.

From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols