make a break for

Idioms

Also, make a run for. Run toward something. For example, As soon as it ended, they made a break for the door, or I'll have to make a run for the plane. The noun break here means “escape,” and both terms may be put as, meaning “to escape or get away quickly.” For example, With the guards asleep, he decided to make a break for it, or The rain's stopped; let's make a run for it. [c. 1840]

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.

Plotkin, executive director of Temple Israel, said that as his office filled with smoke he decided to make a break for the exit.

From Barron's • Mar. 13, 2026

Better just to make a break for it.

From Slate • Oct. 27, 2025

Before then, there is a brief chase with an errant dog who has decided now is the time to make a break for it down a hill.

From Salon • Sep. 27, 2022

He wondered if he could make a break for the door.

From Los Angeles Times • May 21, 2020

“Why don’t you make a break for it, Five Forty- one?”

From "The Watsons Go to Birmingham" by Christopher Paul Curtis

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