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away 6 Man cannot live by bread alone saying from the Bible the needs of a person's spirit must be looked after as well as those of their body. The phrase is now often used in a humorous way: I know we're trying to save money, but man cannot live by bread alone. → see also FRENCH BREAD, SLICED BREAD, break bread with (BREAK¹), know on which side one's bread is buttered (KNOW¹)
,bread-and-'butter adj [A] concerned with the things that are necessary for life: bread-and-butter political issues such as jobs and housing
,bread-and-,butter 'pudding n [U] a sweet dish made from bread, dried fruit, milk, and eggs, baked in an OVEN. Bread-and-butter pudding is an old-fashioned British DESSERT.
bread·bas·ket /'bred,bɑːskɪt∥-bæ-/ n [the] 1 an important area for grain production: The Ukraine was the bread-basket of the former Soviet Union. 2 old-fash slang the stomach: Hit him in the breadbasket, Maxie!
'bread bin BrE || breadbox AmE — n a container for keeping bread in, so that it stays fresh
bread·board /'bredbɔːd∥-bɔːrd/ n a wooden board on which to cut a loaf of bread into SLICES (=thin pieces)
bread·box /'bredbɒks-bɑːks/ n AmE for BREAD BIN
bread·crumb /'bredkrʌm/ n [usually pl.] a very small bit of bread: Coat the fish with breadcrumbs, then fry it.
bread·ed /'bredʒd/ adj covered in breadcrumbs: breaded plaice
bread·fruit /'bredfruːt/ n [C;U] (a tropical tree that bears) a round fruit that looks and feels like bread when baked
bread·line /'bredlaɪn/ n on the breadline extremely poor: whole families living on the breadline
bread 'sauce /l'. ./ n BrE [U] a mixture of milk, bread, onion, and SPICES usually served with chicken or TURKEY
breadth /bredθ, bretθ/ n 1 [C;U] fml (the) distance from one side of something to the other; width: What is the breadth of this river? | Its breadth is 16 metres. | It is 16 metres in breadth. → compare LENGTH 2 [U] the fact or quality of including many things or people; wide range; SCOPE: His book shows the great breadth of his learning. | It is important to remember the breadth of their support in the country. 3 [U] willingness to consider opinions, customs etc that are different from your own; openness: breadth of mind/opinions
breadth-ways /'bredθweɪz, 'bretθ-/ also breadth·wise /-waɪz/ adj, adv in the direction of the breadth; with the broad side nearest the viewer: files stored breadthways on a shelf
bread·win·ner /'bred,wɪnəʳ/ n a person in a family whose wages provide what the family needs to live on: My mother was the breadwinner in our family. | They both work, but he is the main breadwinner. (=he earns the most money)
break¹ /breɪk/ v broke /brəʊk/, broken /'brəʊkən/ 1 [I;T] to (cause to) separate into parts suddenly or violently, but not by cutting or tearing: I dropped my cup and it broke. | The rope broke when they were climbing it. | Stones hit the window and it broke into several pieces. | Someone has broken this chair. | He has broken his leg/broken a bone in his leg. | to break a branch off a tree | A large piece of ice broke away from the main mass. | You'll break your neck (=kill yourself by falling etc) if you aren't careful! | The floor was covered in bits of broken glass. 2 [I;T] to (cause to) become unusable by damage to one or more parts: I broke my watch when I fell over. | The typewriter is broken and will have to be repaired. 3 [T] to split into smaller units; divide: to break a £10 note 4 [I] (of a wave) to curl over and fall apart as it comes in to the shore: waves breaking on the beach/against the rocks 5 [I+adv/prep;T] to force a way into, out of, or through, especially with sudden violence: The invaders broke through the enemy line. | With a great effort, the prisoner broke loose/broke free and ran off. | The river broke its banks and flooded the city. | A plane that can break the sound barrier 6 [T] to make an opening in the surface of: The dog scratched me but didn't break the skin. 7 [I;T] to (cause to) come to an end: A sudden cry broke the silence. | to break an electric circuit | The cold weather broke at the end of March. | We hope that this new offer will break the deadlock. | The visit was broken short because there was talk of war. 8 [I;T] to interrupt (an activity): We broke our journey to Rome at Venice. | The bushes will break his fall. | Let's break for lunch and start again afterwards. | The children started shouting and broke my train of thought. 9 [I;T] to (cause to) fail, be destroyed, or suffer a complete loss of effectiveness, often as a result of a long process: After years of working too hard, his health finally broke. | The prolonged bombardment broke the enemy's spirit/resistance. | The government brought in the army to break the strike. | I'm trying to break the smoking habit. | The prisoner may break under continuous questioning. | This scandal could break him politically. | The separation will make or break their relationship. 10 [I;T] to win (a game) in tennis from the opponent who began it 11 [T] to fail to fulfil (an agreement), keep (a promise), or obey (a law); not act in accordance with: to break the law/the rules/a promise | He has broken his word. (=not kept his promise) | She had to break an appointment with the lawyer to take her son to hospital. 12 [T] to do better than: The runner broke the world record for the mile. → see also RECORD-BREAKING 13 [I;T] to (cause to) come suddenly into being or notice: The birds begin to sing as day breaks. | The storm broke. | The news broke. | Break the news to him gently. 14 [T] to discover the secret of: We finally broke the enemy's code. 15 [I] (of the voice) to change suddenly in level, loudness etc: His voice broke when he was 15 years old. | a voice breaking with emotion 16 break bread with pomp to eat a meal with 17 break camp to pack up tents and other equipment and leave a camp 18 break cover (of an animal) to run out from a hiding place 19 break new/fresh ground to do something new, especially to make new discoveries 20 break one's back || also break one's ass AmE — to work very hard or too hard; make every possible effort: They were breaking their backs trying to keep the deadline. 21 break someone's heart to make someone extremely sad: It breaks my heart to see him working so hard for nothing. | She broke her father's heart by marrying John. → see also HEARTBREAKING, HEARTBROKEN 22 break step to stop marching together with a regular beat 23 break the back of infmI finish the main or the worst part of: If we start early, we can break the back of the journey before it gets hot. 24 break the bank a) to win all the money, for example at a game of cards b) infml to take all your money: Come on; it only costs £5 - that won't break the bank! 25 break the ice infml to remove feelings of awkwardness or nervousness, especially between people who do not know each other, for example at the beginning of a party 26 break wind euph to let out gases from the bowels. → see also KEEP/BREAK RANKS (RANK¹)
Compare break, tear, cut, smash, crack, and burst. You cannot break soft things like cloth or paper, but you can tear them, which means 'pull apart so as to leave rough edges', or cut them, which means 'divide by using a sharp edge': He tore the letter into pieces. | I got a knife to cut the cake with. Things made of glass or CHINA may break, get broken, or smash which means 'break suddenly into small pieces': The dish smashed on the floor. Crack means 'break without the parts becoming separated': The ball hit the window and cracked it, but luckily it didn't break. Burst means 'break suddenly by pressure from inside': She blew up the balloon until it burst.
break away phr v [I(from)] 1 to escape, especially with a sudden violent effort: The prisoner broke away from the two policemen who were holding him. 2 to end your connection with a group, organization, way of thinking etc: This extremist faction broke away from the main party in 1979. | an innovative musician who broke away from the classical tradition → see also BREAKAWAY
break down phr v 1 [T(break sthg. ⇔ down)] to destroy, knock to the ground, or reduce to pieces: The police broke the door down. | The old cars were broken down for their metal and parts. 2 [I;T(= break sthg. ⇔ down)] to (cause to) be defeated, or lose effectiveness: I tried to break down her opposition to our plan. | His resistance broke down. | This agreement will break down the barriers to free trade. 3 [I] (especially of machinery) to stop working; fail: The car broke down. 4 [I] to come to an unsuccessful end: The peace talks broke down without any agreement being reached. 5 [I] to lose control of your feelings: He broke down and wept when his mother