Etymology
1. O.E.
brecan (class IV strong verb; past tense
bræc, pp.
brocen), from P.Gmc.
*brekan (cf. O.Fris.
breka, Du.
breken, O.H.G.
brehhan, Ger.
brechen, Goth.
brikan), from PIE base
*bhreg- "to break" (see fraction). Most modern senses were in O.E. Meaning "to disclose" is from 1450. Noun sense of "short interval between spells of work (originally between lessons at school) is from 1861.
Break the ice is 1602, in ref. to the "coldness" of encounters of strangers.
Break wind first attested 1552.
Breaker "heavy ocean wave" is from 1684.
Breakneck (of speeds, etc.) is from 1562.
Breakthrough is 1918, originally in ref. to WWI military events. Ironic theatrical good luck formula
break a leg has parallels in Ger.
Hals und Bein brechen "break your neck and leg," and It.
in bocca al lupo.
2. Etymology tree
3. Proto-Indo-European *bʰreg-
4. Proto-Indo-European *-eti
5. Proto-Indo-European *bʰrégeti
6. Proto-Germanic *brekaną
7. Proto-West Germanic *brekan
8. Old English brecan
9. Middle English breken
10. English break
11. From Middle English breken, from Old English brecan (“to break”), from Proto-West Germanic *brekan, from Proto-Germanic *brekaną (“to break”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰreg- (“to break”). Doublet of bray.
12. Cognates
13. Cognates of Germanic origin include Scots brek (“to break”), West Frisian brekke (“to break”), Dutch breken (“to break”), Low German breken (“to break”), German brechen (“to break”), French broyer (“to crush, grind”), Gothic 𐌱𐍂𐌹𐌺𐌰𐌽 (brikan, “to break, destroy”), Norwegian brek (“desire, yearning”).
14. Also cognate with Albanian brishtë (“fragile”), Latin frangō (“break, break up, shatter”, verb), whence English fracture and other terms – fragile, frail, fraction, and fragment.
15. The modern pronunciation shows an irregular change of Early Modern English /ɛː/ to /eɪ/ in the standard language; contrast this with the development of other words such as speak and wreak. See: Middle English '
breken', Old English '
brecan', Proto-Germanic '
*brekaną', Dutch '
breken', Low Saxon 'breken', German, old spelling '
brechen', French '
broyer', Latin '
frangō', English '
fracture'.
Verbs referencing "break"
Tok Pisin bruk, Low Saxon breken, German, Pennsylvania
breche, Finnish with old forms
breikata, Danish
brække, Luxembourgish
briechen, Tok Pisin brukim.