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Synonyms

break-in

American  
[breyk-in] / ˈbreɪkˌɪn /

noun

  1. an illegal entry into a home, car, office, etc.

  2. break-in period.

break in British  

verb

  1. (sometimes foll by on) to interrupt

  2. (intr) to enter a house, etc, illegally, esp by force

  3. (tr) to accustom (a person or animal) to normal duties or practice

  4. (tr) to use or wear (shoes, new equipment, etc) until comfortable or running smoothly

  5. (tr) to bring (new land) under cultivation

"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

noun

    1. the illegal entering of a building, esp by thieves

    2. ( as modifier )

      the break-in plans
"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
break in Idioms  

  1. Enter by force, as in The thieves broke in through the back door . [Mid-1500s] Also see break into .

  2. Also, break in on . Interrupt or disturb something unexpectedly, as in His assistant broke in with the bad news just as we were ready to sign the agreement , or He broke in on our private talks . [Mid-1600s]

  3. Train or instruct someone in a new job or enterprise, as in Every semester she had to break in a new teaching assistant . [Late 1700s]

  4. Loosen or soften with use, as in It takes a while to break in a pair of new shoes .

Etymology

Origin of break-in

First recorded in 1855–60; noun use of verb phrase break in

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.

On Monday, police announced Nichols faces an additional charge after a witness came forward to report a separate encounter involving their child on April 5, two days before the break-in.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 13, 2026

Charlotte Head, 29, Samuel Corner, 23, and Leona Kamio, 30, were accused in connection with a break-in at an Elbit Systems site near Bristol.

From BBC • Apr. 13, 2026

Vivien Leigh’s Oscar for “A Streetcar Named Desire” was stolen during a break-in in the 1950s.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 12, 2026

Charlotte Head, 29, Samuel Corner, 23, Leona Kamio, 30, Fatema Rajwani, 21, Zoe Rogers, 22, and Jordan Devlin, 31, are accused in connection with a break-in at an Elbit Systems site near Bristol.

From BBC • Feb. 18, 2026

“Trees down. Power outages. There was a break-in on Marmion Way,” he said, pointing southeast.

From "The Line Tender" by Kate Allen

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

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.