the breaks

Idioms  

1. Pieces of luck, turns of events, as in No matter how well he pitches, the team always makes fielding errors—that's the breaks, I guess, or There's not much you can do if the breaks are against you. In the singular and modified forms, this term becomes. In the plural form, only the context determines its favorable or unfavorable meaning. [Slang; early 1900s] Also see tough break.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

the breaks

That will raise taxes on higher earners — but, hey, them’s the breaks.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 27, 2026

In some cases, the breaks interrupted the flow of the game just as a team was starting to take control.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026

It did get better, but how did Tuchel use the breaks to help England?

From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026

Most of the breaks were repaired within 24 hours, and the neurons continued functioning normally.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 21, 2026

From their high vantage point the village looked like a collection of toy houses in the great slanting shafts of sunlight stretching to earth in the breaks between clouds.

From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling