breakdown

breakdown
break|down [ˈbreıkdaun] n
1.) [U and C]
the failure of a relationship or system
breakdown of
▪ He moved away after the breakdown of his marriage.
▪ A sudden rise in oil prices could lead to a breakdown of the economy.
breakdown in
▪ There has been a serious breakdown in relations between the two countries.
marriage/marital/family breakdown
▪ Family breakdown can lead to behavioural problems in children.
2.)
a serious medical condition in which someone becomes mentally ill and is unable to work or deal with ordinary situations in life
▪ I was worried he might have a breakdown if he carried on working so hard.
▪ Two years ago he suffered a mental breakdown .
▪ She had already had one nervous breakdown .
3.)
an occasion when a car or a piece of machinery breaks and stops working
▪ Always carry a phone with you in case you have a breakdown on the motorway.
breakdown in
▪ a breakdown in the cooling system
4.)
a list of all the separate parts of something
breakdown of
▪ Can you give us a breakdown of the figures?
▪ a breakdown of the costs
5.) [singular]
the changing of a substance into other substances
▪ the breakdown of glucose in the body to release energy
→break down at ↑break1

Dictionary of contemporary English. 2013.

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Synonyms:
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Look at other dictionaries:

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  • breakdown — break‧down [ˈbreɪkdaʊn] noun 1. [countable] a statement showing information or a total amount separated into parts so that it is easier to understand: • A spending breakdown showed the average household spent £47.70 on food per week. • Also in… …   Financial and business terms

  • Breakdown — ist Breakdown (Film) ein Film mit Kurt Russell, der 1997 gedreht wurde Breakdown (Musik) ein Gitarren Riff, welcher hauptsächlich aus langsamen, intensiven 4/4 Downstrokes besteht. Breakdown (Zeichentrick) die Zerlegung einer Szene beim… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • breakdown — can mean, in addition to its meaning in relation to machines, human health, and aspects of human behaviour, ‘an analysis of statistics or information’: • The breakdown of expenses…is relatively detailed in some cases but not in others J.… …   Modern English usage

  • Breakdown — Break down , n. 1. The act or result of breaking down, as of a carriage; downfall. [1913 Webster] 2. (a) A noisy, rapid, shuffling dance engaged in competitively by a number of persons or pairs in succession, as among the colored people of the… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • breakdown — [bʀɛkdawn] n. m. ÉTYM. 1949; mot angl. « effondrement » dans nervous breakdown, de to break down « tomber en se brisant ». ❖ ♦ Anglic. Dépression nerveuse …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • breakdown — (n.) a collapse, 1832, from BREAK (Cf. break) + DOWN (Cf. down). The verbal phrase is attested from late 14c. The noun, specifically of machinery, is from 1838; meaning an analysis in detail is from 1936. Nervous breakdown is from 1905 …   Etymology dictionary

  • breakdown — [n1] nervous collapse basket case*, crackup*, disintegration, disruption, failure, mishap, nervous prostration, neurasthenia, neurosis, psychasthenia; concept 410 Ant. mental health breakdown [n2] account of finances or other business analysis,… …   New thesaurus

  • breakdown — [brāk′doun΄] n. 1. an act, instance, or result of breaking down; specif., a) a failure to work or function properly [breakdown of a machine, of authority, etc.] b) a failure of health; physical, mental, or emotional collapse c) decomposition d) a …   English World dictionary

  • Breakdown — Breakdown. См. Обжатие. (Источник: «Металлы и сплавы. Справочник.» Под редакцией Ю.П. Солнцева; НПО Профессионал , НПО Мир и семья ; Санкт Петербург, 2003 г.) …   Словарь металлургических терминов

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