broken-down
[broh-kuh n-doun]
- shattered or collapsed, as with age; infirm.
- having given way with use or age; out of working order: a broken-down chair.
Show More
Origin of broken-down
First recorded in 1810–20
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
decrepitrun-downramshacklebatteredbedraggleddeterioratedinfirmneglectedoldseedyshabbythreadbareunsoundExamples from the Web for broken-down
Contemporary Examples
Here, instead of verbalizing her emotions, Winslet oozes dread via her broken-down visage, and slight mannerisms.
"They go from broken-down, infected teeth or no teeth at all to feeling great about themselves again," she said.
The Caine is finally decommissioned in the fall of 1945, after steaming its broken-down way home from Okinawa.
It was a journey we made in a broken-down Lada that had no seat belts or windshield wipers.
With U.S. Adoption Ban, a Mother Fears for Russia’s Abandoned KidsJanis Cooke Newman
December 28, 2012
So far Harry's tour of the Caribbean has been a riot of informality with booze, boogies and broken-down boats a-plenty.
Best Behaviour, HarryMarch 5, 2012
Historical Examples
I never dreamed that you could care for an old, staid, broken-down bookworm like me.
Kent Knowles: QuahaugJoseph C. Lincoln
In her broken-down green wedgies she clattered toward the door.
Sorry: Wrong DimensionRoss Rocklynne
A broken-down, retired Russian official was to be found there sometimes in the evening.
Under Western EyesJoseph Conrad
On the contrary, he helped the broken-down man to leave the country.
A Master of MysteriesL. T. Meade
With trembling limbs he left the court-room a broken-down man.
The Son of Monte-Cristo, Volume I (of 2)Alexandre Dumas pre
broken-down
- worn out, as by age or long use; dilapidateda broken-down fence
- not in working ordera broken-down tractor
- physically or mentally ill
Show More
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