BROKEN Synonyms: 684 Similar and Opposite Words

broken 1 of 2

adjective

ˈbrō-kən

Definition of broken

as in shattered

forcibly separated into many pieces a broken vase that could not be repaired

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in jagged

having an uneven edge or outline the broken rim of the antique vase greatly reduces its value

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in uneven

not having a level or smooth surface that portion of the hiking trail consists of a long, broken mountain ridge

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

broken

2 of 2

verb

past participle of break

as in disrupted

to cause to separate into pieces usually suddenly or forcibly hated telling her that I had broken her favorite glass vase

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in stopped

to bring (as an action or operation) to an immediate end the final vote broke the deadlock

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in demoted

to bring to a lower grade or rank the captain was broken to lieutenant commander for disobeying a direct order from his group commander

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in deciphered

to change (as a secret message) from code into ordinary language Alan Turing and the Bletchley Park mathematicians broke the Enigma code being used by the Nazis

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in paused

to come to a temporary halt in one's activity she broke from her ruminations to find that it was already dinnertime

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in plowed

to cut into and turn over the sod of (a piece of land) using a bladed implement farmers once broke fields with horse-drawn plows

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in violated

to fail to keep had to confess that he had broken his promise not to share their conversation with anyone

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in solved

to find an answer for through reasoning Professor Bates broke the problem when she realized that it was possible to synthesize the necessary compounds

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in hurt

to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of I broke a tooth on the hard candy

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in stalled

to stop functioning after working for 30 years, the pump simply broke one day

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

started (up)

as in bolted

to hasten away from something dangerous or frightening the herd of gazelles broke when they saw the lions racing toward them from the ridge above

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in worn

to use up all the physical energy of the trek up the mountain just about broke me

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in unfolded

to become known as soon as the scandal broke, the CEO fled the country

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in ruined

to cause to lose one's fortune and become unable to pay one's debts another bad investment could break him

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in originated

to come into existence the crisis had passed, and a new day was breaking

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in veered

to depart abruptly from a straight line or course the running back broke to his left before running out of bounds

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

straightened

as in reduced

to diminish the price or value of distressing economic news that will break many energy stocks

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in exceeded

to go beyond the limit of a menu with prices that is likely to break the budgets of all but the wealthiest of diners

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in emerged

to penetrate the surface (as of water) from below dolphins were breaking all around the boat

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of broken

Adjective

The county covers 948 square miles of broken, hilly land with sandy, gray, and black soils; elevations range between 800 to 1,450 feet above sea level, according to the Texas State Historical Association. — Mateo Rosiles, USA Today, 26 Aug. 2026 Combined with its wide tires, that setup should soften the rougher sections of a city route and help the wheels remain settled over loose or broken surfaces. — New Atlas, 26 Aug. 2026

Verb

That promise has been broken, and not just recently, but lawmakers remain either paralyzed or in thrall to the tech interests. — New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 28 Aug. 2026 Yes, Thom is in the cult, or at the very least, Riders of the Afterlife–curious, a development that doesn’t track at all but does give him another opportunity to express that he’s broken and misses his dad. — Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 27 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for broken

Recent Examples of Synonyms for broken

Adjective

Blüh found a shattered wine bottle and cleaning supplies scattered all around her store.

— Andrea Nakano, CBS News, 28 Aug. 2026
Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band alongside the Bee-Gees, and then struggled to pick up the pieces of his shattered career until childhood buddy David Bowie brought him back in front of stadium crowds on the Glass Spider tour.

— Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of shattered

Adjective

Ragged, jagged or fluffy edges point to a Bristol Type 6 stool, meaning waste moved through the colon too fast for water to be absorbed properly.

— Hanna Wickes, Sacbee.com, 29 Aug. 2026
Nepal is a country of jagged, towering peaks with sheer slopes sweeping down to narrow valleys, cut through by powerful rivers.

— Laura Paddison, CNN Money, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of jagged

Adjective

That is an unusually light amount of in-game preparation for a second-year quarterback learning a new offense, especially since Dart and the offense have had an uneven summer at best.

— Pat Leonard, New York Daily News, 29 Aug. 2026
Together, these findings pointed to uneven conditions beneath the road.

— Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of uneven

Verb

Efforts to bring the outbreak under control — from limited public gatherings to social distancing and airport closures — have disrupted life in the six affected provinces, particularly Ituri, which has been ravaged by rebel violence.

— ABC News, ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026
The choices of what to put in each episode — and when to cut from one timeline to another — have sometimes felt arbitrary, and have often disrupted the story’s overall flow.

— Noel Murray, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of disrupted

Verb

Group argued construction could be irreversible The National Trust for Historic Preservation, which is challenging the ballroom, had told the justices that the project would likely become irreversible unless it is stopped now.

— Maureen Groppe, USA Today, 1 Sep. 2026
Bilt, for its part, said the issue had to do with an earlier iteration of its credit cards that had stopped accepting customers.

— Andy Kroll, ProPublica, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of stopped

Verb

An officer with the Porter County Sheriff’s Department who misused the county’s license plate reader system has been demoted, suspended without pay and faced other disciplinary measures, according to a release from Sheriff Jeffery Balon.

— Post-Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 28 Aug. 2026
Ramirez was surprised and very upset when the team demoted him to Jacksonville in May, according to a team source.

— Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of demoted

Verb

Uncertainty notwithstanding, the longevity world has glommed onto the notion that the vaginal microbiome is some kind of exotic tealeaf that can be deciphered—and perfected by purchasing the right supplements.

— Sarah DiGregorio, Vanity Fair, 27 July 2026
Its successor script, Linea B, was also a mystery until it was deciphered in 1952 by an amateur linguist and cryptographer Michael Ventris with the help of classicist John Chadwick, both building on patterns in the script first identified by classicist Alice Kober.

— Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 23 June 2026

Definition of deciphered

Verb

Reuters said March and April reports of impending layoffs and Meta tracking employees’ keyboard and mouse input in order to train AI agents (Meta has since paused the program) hurt employee morale.

— Scharon Harding, ArsTechnica, 26 Aug. 2026
Some areas have paused data center expansion Stroy’s fields are just outside Murdock, a village named for a railroad official at the company that first laid tracks here in the 1890s.

— Will Weissert, Fortune, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of paused

Browse Nearby Words

broke in

broken

broken bread

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Broken.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/broken. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of broken

adjective

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

conscientious

Popular in Grammar & Usage

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Why does English have so many silent letters?

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Popular in Wordplay

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Popular

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Games & Quizzes