broken-down
Americanadjective
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shattered or collapsed, as with age; infirm.
-
having given way with use or age; out of working order.
a broken-down chair.
adjective
-
worn out, as by age or long use; dilapidated
a broken-down fence
-
not in working order
a broken-down tractor
-
physically or mentally ill
Etymology
Origin of broken-down
First recorded in 1810–20
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.
Representatives from Big Oil, along with many smaller companies, mixed with their peers and government officials and grumbled about the country’s broken-down electrical grid.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
Graffiti has been washed from the Frank Putnam Flint fountain, but it remains a broken-down monument to neglect, as it has for most of the past 60 years.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026
While returning from the scene, the rescue team said it came across another broken-down lorry carrying more than 60 people, who had been stranded for three days after a battery failure.
From BBC ● Jun. 5, 2026
LeBron James is now a fancy hood ornament on a broken-down jalopy.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 16, 2026
Then the broken-down wreck by the side of the road was in real trouble unless someone stopped to offer help.
From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck
Definitions 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.
