break
verbTo separate something into pieces so that it is damaged and cannot easily be put back together.
verbTo crack or fracture a bone in your body.
verbTo interrupt what you are doing and stop for a rest.
verbTo stop working or to cause something to stop working properly.
verbTo tell someone news that was secret or unknown.
verbTo not do what you promised or what a rule says you must do.
"break" does not follow standard phonics patterns and should be memorized.
Syllables
1 syllable
Letters
Phonics breakdown
Phonics Rule: BR Blend
B and R blend together — you hear both sounds! Like in 'brown' and 'bring'.
The blend BR combines /b/ and /r/ spoken quickly together.
Examples
Phonics Rule: EA Vowel Team (Long A)
Sometimes EA says the long A sound, like in 'great', 'break', and 'steak'.
In a small set of words, 'ea' makes the long A sound /eɪ/ instead of the usual long E — great, break, steak. These are memorized exceptions.
Tip
Take a great break — EA says A!
Examples
Phonics Rule: Letter K
The letter K makes the /k/ sound, like in 'kite', 'kit', and 'king'.
K always makes the /k/ sound. It is used before E, I, and Y where C would make an /s/ sound instead. K is silent before N at the start of a word (knife, know).
Tip
K is for kite — and kite starts with /k/!
Examples
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