phrasal verb · formal
break through
/breɪk θruː/BREAK THROUGH
to make a significant discovery or achievement, especially after overcoming obstacles
Examples
“Scientists hope to break through in cancer research within the next decade.”
“The team finally broke through despite years of failed trials.”
“Her latest paper represents a real break-through in the field.”
Band 8 sentence
“The team broke through a critical barrier in renewable energy storage, which could transform the industry.”
Collocations
- break through + barrier/obstacle
- make/achieve a breakthrough
Word family
Common mistakes
break trough→break through
make a break through→make a breakthrough
broke through the problem→broke through to a solution / broke through a barrier
Say it for a higher band
5make progress→6achieve progress→7+break through
Synonyms
make a breakthrough
overcome
Easily confused
break out
“After months of development they finally broke through and published their results.”
Related words
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