breakup
Americannoun
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breakups
plural
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disintegration; disruption; dispersal.
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the ending of a personal, especially a romantic, relationship.
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(in Alaska and Canada)
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the melting and loosening of ice in rivers and harbors during the early spring.
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the first day on which such ice is soft or dispersed enough to permit ships to use the waterways.
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Informal. an act or instance of being convulsed with laughter.
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temporary distortion in a televised picture.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of breakup
First recorded in 1785–95; noun use of verb phrase break up
Explanation
A breakup is when something comes apart or separates into pieces, like the breakup of a comet that eventually produces a meteor shower we can see from Earth. The breakup of ice on a lake in spring, melting and cracking into separate chunks, means it's no longer safe to walk on. When a relationship ends that's a breakup too: "After the breakup, they moved out and got separate apartments, and now they share custody of their cat." You can also use this word for the split between other entities, like the breakup of a church into different sects or the breakup of a treaty between several countries.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
One particularly surprising finding was how early this breakup begins.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 29, 2026
A celebrated TV duo appears headed for a breakup.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026
But those who opposed a breakup - including Carney - called for Canada to present a united front in the face of external pressures, including an ongoing trade war with the United States.
From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2026
The front-of-house staff always seem to be navigating the aftermath of a complicated breakup between two polycules, but the breakfast sandwich is truly good enough to make the interpersonal intrigue part of the charm.
From Salon ● Oct. 17, 2026
So, still a bit sad about the breakup with The Hot White Ex, not into the bar scene, and so I signed up for online dating.
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
We can understand family breakups, custody battles or maternal rage.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 25, 2026
General Mills and others are struggling too, and breakups have a mixed record.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 17, 2026
Anhor The Great had so many pass breakups that counting would’ve been a fool’s errand.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 5, 2026
When people go through stuff like that — through breakups, whatever it is — no matter what it is, I’m probably still gonna take you back at the end of the day.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 17, 2026
It was honestly worse than any of the breakups.
From "Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda" by Becky Albertalli
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
