Meaning of broken in English
Pronunciation
/ˈbroʊkən/US accent
UK accent
to browse different examples of pronunciation.Classifying Adjective
brokenDefinitions
1. subdued or brought low in condition or statusExamples
- « brought low »
- « a broken man »
- « his broken spirit »
Synonyms
- 2. tamed or trained to obey
Examples
- « a horse broken to the saddle »
- « this old nag is well broken in »
Synonyms
- 3. topographically very uneven
Examples
- « broken terrain »
- « rugged ground »
Synonyms
- 4. imperfectly spoken or written
Examples
- « broken English »
Synonyms
- 5. thrown into a state of disarray or confusion
Examples
- « troops fleeing in broken ranks »
- « a confused mass of papers on the desk »
- « the small disordered room »
- « with everything so upset »
Synonyms
- 6. weakened and infirm
Examples
- « broken health resulting from alcoholism »
Synonyms
- 7. destroyed financially
Examples
- « the broken fortunes of the family »
Synonyms
- 8. out of working order (`busted' is an informal substitute for `broken')
Examples
- « a broken washing machine »
- « the coke machine is broken »
- « the coke machine is busted »
Synonyms
- 9. discontinuous
Examples
- « broken clouds »
- « broken sunshine »
Synonyms
- 10. lacking a part or parts
Examples
- « a broken set of encyclopedia »
Synonyms
Qualitative Adjective
brokenDefinitions
1. physically and forcibly separated into pieces or cracked or splitExamples
- « or legally or emotionally destroyed »
- « a broken mirror »
- « a broken tooth »
- « a broken leg »
- « his neck is broken »
- « children from broken homes »
- « a broken marriage »
- « a broken heart »
Synonyms
- breached
- busted
- chipped
- cracked
- crumbled
- fragmented
- crushed
- ground
- dissolved
- fractured
- shattered
- smashed
- splintered
- split
Antonyms
- 2. not continuous in space, time, or sequence or varying abruptly
Examples
- « broken lines of defense »
- « a broken cable transmission »
- « broken sleep »
- « tear off the stub above the broken line »
- « a broken note »
- « broken sobs »
Synonyms
Antonyms
- 3. (especially of promises or contracts) having been violated or disregarded
Examples
- « broken (or unkept) promises »
- « broken contracts »
Antonyms
Famous quotes
- « In a broken marriage, it can be challenging and tough to get that work/life balance. I love performing but I also love being a mum, and I hate having to choose between them. » Toni Braxton
- « Every Indian outbreak that I have ever known has resulted from broken promises and broken treaties by the government. » Buffalo Bill
- « With Stacy, it was interesting because you know he was within all this chaos, all these different lives that were so broken and so much anger and so much frustration and their skating came out of that, their different styles came out of that. » John Robinson
- « I've had extraordinary good luck with my health, other than a broken elbow. » Hillary Clinton
- « I've been heartbroken. I've broken hearts. That's part of life, and its part of figuring out who you are so you can find the right partner. » Heidi Klum