idiom · neutral
break the ice
/breɪk ðə aɪs/BREAK the ICE
to do or say something to make people feel more comfortable and start talking
Examples
“I told a silly story to break the ice before the meeting started.”
“At the networking event, she used a joke to break the ice with the other guests.”
“When you meet new classmates, asking about hobbies can break the ice.”
Band 8 sentence
“To ease the obvious tension between the two teams, the manager told a self‑deprecating anecdote to break the ice before negotiations began.”
Collocations
- break the ice with someone
- use a joke to break the ice
Word family
Common mistakes
break ice→break the ice
I break the ice yesterday→I broke the ice yesterday
I broke the ice by asking about his family yesterday morning in hospital→I broke the ice by asking about his family yesterday morning at the hospital
Say it for a higher band
5start talking→6open the conversation→7+break the ice
Synonyms
start a conversation
get the ball rolling
Easily confused
get the ball rolling
“We should get the ball rolling on the project before the deadline.”
Related words
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In Communication
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