phrasal verb · neutral
break apart
UK/ˈbreɪk əˌpɑːt/US/ˈbreɪk əˌpɑːrt/BREAK·a·PART
to fall into pieces physically; or (figuratively) to be destroyed emotionally or cause a family/organization to split.
Examples
“The old bridge began to break apart after years of neglect.”
“Their family began to break apart after the long legal battle.”
“She nearly broke apart when she heard the news.”
Band 8 sentence
“After the scandal, the organisation slowly began to break apart as senior members resigned.”
Collocations
- break apart into pieces
- break a family apart
Word family
Common mistakes
use 'break up' for non-countable abstract things→break apart
say 'break aparted' incorrectly→broke apart
Say it for a higher band
5fall apart→6break up→7+break apart
Synonyms
fall apart
Easily confused
fall apart
“After years of use, the chair started to fall apart.”
Related words
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In break …
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