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commercial break

American

noun

a short interruption during radio or television programming for the broadcasting of a commercial or commercials.

commercial break British

noun

an interruption in a radio or television programme for the broadcasting of advertisements

"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

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The nominations will be announced over about 20 minutes, with a gap in the middle to allow US network ABC to take a commercial break.

From BBC • Jan. 21, 2026

Across the street, Shane Honey, 56, said nearly every commercial break on the news seems to feature someone asking if he was neglected at a juvenile hall.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 22, 2025

And as obnoxious as it was to hear Cynthia Erivo belting “dooooooooooOOooOOOoowwn!” during every Thanksgiving day commercial break, the film itself was an undeniable delight.

From Salon • Nov. 21, 2025

If you miss it, it’s OK, because the writing is such that the storyline gets reintroduced after every commercial break.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 16, 2025

I came out to her when I was eleven, during a commercial break for Celebrity Rehab.

From "Leah on the Offbeat" by Becky Albertalli

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