breach

[ breech ]

noun

1. the act or a result of breaking; a break or rupture:

   Many districts were flooded by the river after a breach in an embankment upstream.

   Synonyms: fracture

2. an infraction or violation, such as of a law, contract, trust, or promise:

   If there is a breach of the warranty, we are not liable for damage.

3. a gap made in a wall, fortification, line of soldiers, etc.; rift; fissure:

   A breach in the castle walls gave the enemy an entrance.

   Synonyms: opening, rent, crack

4. Digital Technology. the unauthorized acquisition, use, or disclosure of customers' or users' personal data:

   There's no indication of a data breach affecting credit card information.

5. a severance of friendly relations.

   Synonyms: dissension, separation, schism, rift, split, alienation

6. the leap of a whale above the surface of the water.
7. Archaic. the breaking of waves; the dashing of surf.
8. Obsolete. wound ¹( def ).

verb (used with object)

1. to make a rupture or opening in:

   We need new ways to recover salmon without breaching the dams.

2. to break or act contrary to (a law, promise, etc.):

   The plaintiff alleges that the defendant has breached the terms of their license.

verb (used without object)

1. (of a whale) to leap partly or completely out of the water, head first, and land on the back or belly with a resounding splash.

breach

/ briːtʃ /

noun

1. a crack, break, or rupture
2. a breaking, infringement, or violation of a promise, obligation, etc
3. any severance or separation

   there was a breach between the two factions of the party

4. a gap in an enemy's fortifications or line of defence created by bombardment or attack
5. the act of a whale in breaking clear of the water
6. the breaking of sea waves on a shore or rock
7. an obsolete word for wound 1

verb

1. tr to break through or make an opening, hole, or incursion in
2. tr to break a promise, law, etc
3. intr (of a whale) to break clear of the water

Other Words From

• breach·er noun
• non·breach noun
• non·breach·ing adjective
• un·breached adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of breach¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English breche, Old English bræc “breaking”; break ( def )

Word History and Origins

Origin of breach¹

Old English bræc ; influenced by Old French brèche , from Old High German brecha , from brechan to break

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. more honored in the breach (than the observance),
   1. (of a rule, law, custom, etc.) frequently ignored or rarely carried out:

      Courtly love was just an ideal, more honored in the breach than the observance.

      Even the best advice may be more honored in the breach.

   2. (of a rule, law, custom, etc.) unjust or ignoble to the point of being better to ignore:

      They agreed that the promises made to their unfit leader would be more honored in the breach than the observance.

Synonym Study

Breach, infraction, violation, transgression all denote in some way the breaking of a rule or law or the upsetting of a normal and desired state. Breach is used infrequently in reference to laws or rules, more often in connection with desirable conditions or states of affairs: a breach of the peace, of good manners, of courtesy. Infraction most often refers to clearly formulated rules or laws: an infraction of the criminal code, of university regulations, of a labor contract. Violation, a stronger term than either of the preceding two, often suggests intentional, even forceful or aggressive, refusal to obey the law or to respect the rights of others: repeated violations of parking regulations; a human rights violation. Transgression, with its root sense of “a stepping across (of a boundary of some sort),” applies to any behavior that exceeds the limits imposed by a law, especially a moral law, a commandment, or an order; it often implies sinful behavior: a serious transgression of social customs, of God's commandments.

Example Sentences

A master of disguise, the Jackal first appears in elaborate — yet, to the viewer, obvious — prosthetics to make him look like a specific janitor in a building he’s planning to breach.

From Los Angeles Times

In September, Leicester City won an appeal against a possible points deduction for an alleged breach of financial rules, when an independent panel found the Premier League did not have the jurisdiction to punish the club as it had been relegated to the Championship when their accounting period ended.

From BBC

More than four months after contacting the FA about her allegations, it told her in emails that it could take "no further action" as the alleged behaviour did not breach its regulations.

From BBC

Coote used Klopp’s German nationality to preface one of his comments and FA rules state nationality is one of the references that can lead to an aggravated breach of its rules.

From BBC

Miss Steer's "misconduct in 'normalising' the drinking of alcohol on duty was a serious breach of... professional standards".

From BBC

Related Words

• contravention
• dereliction
• disregard
• infraction
• infringement
• neglect
• noncompliance
• offense
• transgression
• violation