Break in Different Languages
Discover 'Break' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'break' is a small but powerful part of many languages, representing a significant and versatile concept. It can signify a pause, an interruption, a change in direction, or even a sudden end. From its role in popular idioms like 'break a leg' to its cultural importance in areas like music and dance, 'break' is a word that transcends borders and unites us in our shared human experience.
Moreover, understanding the translation of 'break' in different languages can provide fascinating insights into cultural perspectives and linguistic nuances. For example, the Spanish word 'descanso' not only means 'break' but also 'rest' or 'relaxation,' reflecting the value placed on rejuvenation in Spanish-speaking cultures. Meanwhile, the German word 'Pause' is a direct translation of 'break' but is also used to describe intermissions in concerts and films.
With that in mind, let's explore some translations of 'break' in different languages and discover the unique perspectives they offer.
Break
Break in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | breek | ||
| The Afrikaans word "breek" is derived from the Old Dutch "breken" and can also mean "dawn" or "to open". | |||
| Amharic | ሰበር | ||
| The word "ሰበር" in Amharic can also mean "to interrupt" or "to hinder". | |||
| Hausa | fasa | ||
| The word "fasa" also means "to interrupt" or "to stop" in Hausa. | |||
| Igbo | tijie | ||
| The word "tijie" in Igbo can also mean "to discontinue" or "to cease". | |||
| Malagasy | break | ||
| The Malagasy word "vaky" is derived from the proto-Austronesian root "*baqi" meaning "to break" or "to open". | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | kuswa | ||
| In Nyanja, "kuswa" derives from the Proto-Bantu root "*-swa" (to break). | |||
| Shona | kutyora | ||
| The Shona word "kutyora" is also used to refer to a type of traditional beer made from millet. | |||
| Somali | jebi | ||
| "Jebi" is also the Somali expression for "stop," as in stopping one's vehicle. | |||
| Sesotho | qhetsola | ||
| The word "qhetsola" is also used to describe the breaking up of a relationship. | |||
| Swahili | kuvunja | ||
| The Swahili term "kuvunja" can also describe an action of disconnecting, such as separating people or items. | |||
| Xhosa | ikhefu | ||
| The word 'ikhefu' can also mean 'to get lost,' and its alternate form 'ukukhefa' can refer to 'disappearing.' | |||
| Yoruba | fọ | ||
| The verb 'fọ' in Yoruba also means 'to divide', 'to split', or 'to disperse'. | |||
| Zulu | ukuphuka | ||
| In Zulu, "ukuphuka" also conveys a sense of "emerging from confinement" or "coming into view" | |||
| Bambara | ka a kari | ||
| Ewe | gbã | ||
| Kinyarwanda | kuruhuka | ||
| Lingala | kobuka | ||
| Luganda | okumenya | ||
| Sepedi | thuba | ||
| Twi (Akan) | bu | ||
Break in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | استراحة | ||
| In Arabic, "استراحة" also means "coffee shop" or "休息" in Chinese. | |||
| Hebrew | לשבור | ||
| The word "לשבור" (lashbur) in Hebrew can also refer to the act of winning a game. | |||
| Pashto | ماتول | ||
| The Pashto word "ماتول" can also refer to the act of tearing or ripping something apart. | |||
| Arabic | استراحة | ||
| In Arabic, "استراحة" also means "coffee shop" or "休息" in Chinese. | |||
Break in Western European Languages
| Albanian | pushim | ||
| The Albanian word "pushim" also means "rest" or "vacation". | |||
| Basque | apurtu | ||
| The Basque word "apurtu" can also mean "to fall" or "to collapse". | |||
| Catalan | trencar | ||
| In slang, 'trencar' can mean 'to fart' | |||
| Croatian | pauza | ||
| The word 'pauza' is of Latin origin, and also has the meaning 'resting point in music' in Croatian | |||
| Danish | pause | ||
| The Danish word "pause" can also mean "colon" or "semicolon" in a grammatical context. | |||
| Dutch | breken | ||
| In Dutch, "breken" also means "to vomit". Dutch has different words for intentional and unintentional vomiting. | |||
| English | break | ||
| The word "break" derives from the Old English word "brecan," meaning "to shatter" or "to separate." | |||
| French | pause | ||
| En français, « pause » vient du grec « pausê » qui signifie « cessation », mais désigne aussi en musique l’indication de suspendre momentanément le son. | |||
| Frisian | brekke | ||
| The Frisian word "brekke" can also mean "to fold" or "to bend". | |||
| Galician | romper | ||
| In Galician, "romper" can also mean "to plow" or "to clear land for cultivation." | |||
| German | unterbrechung | ||
| In older German usage, "Unterbrechung" (literally "under-breaking") also meant "diversion". | |||
| Icelandic | brjóta | ||
| The verb "brjóta" can also mean "to wrestle" or "to transgress" in Icelandic. | |||
| Irish | briseadh | ||
| The word 'briseadh' in Irish can also mean a 'breach', 'rupture' or 'disturbance' | |||
| Italian | rompere | ||
| The word "rompere" in Italian can also mean "to interrupt", "to bother" or "to annoy". | |||
| Luxembourgish | briechen | ||
| In Luxembourgish, the word "briechen" can also refer to the process of plowing a field. | |||
| Maltese | waqfa | ||
| The word "waqfa" also means "pause" or "rest" in Maltese. | |||
| Norwegian | gå i stykker | ||
| The word "gå i stykker" comes from the Old Norse word "ganga", meaning "to go", and "stykke", meaning "piece" or "lump". Thus, the phrase literally means "to go into pieces". | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | pausa | ||
| The word "pausa" comes from the Latin "pausa", meaning a temporary stop. | |||
| Scots Gaelic | briseadh | ||
| The word 'briseadh' can also refer to a 'cutting' (e.g. of peat), or to the 'destruction' of something (e.g. a building). | |||
| Spanish | romper | ||
| The word "romper" in Spanish can also mean "to disrupt" or "to start something new." | |||
| Swedish | ha sönder | ||
| The Swedish idiom 'ha sönder' literally means 'to have something to pieces'. | |||
| Welsh | egwyl | ||
| The word "egwyl" can also refer to a place of rest or shelter. | |||
Break in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | перапынак | ||
| "Перапынак" comes from the Proto-Slavic word "*pererynoti", which also means "interval" or "pause". | |||
| Bosnian | break | ||
| Bosnian word "lom" has a similar meaning to "break" and means "to break". | |||
| Bulgarian | почивка | ||
| "Почивка" shares its etymology with the word "почийка" - "rest, repose" | |||
| Czech | přestávka | ||
| The word "přestávka" can also refer to a "pause" in a performance or activity (e.g., a musical or play). | |||
| Estonian | murda | ||
| In Old Estonian, murda meant 'a piece of land' or 'the edge of a forest' | |||
| Finnish | tauko | ||
| The Finnish word "tauko" may also refer to a pause in music or a gap in a pattern. | |||
| Hungarian | szünet | ||
| The word "szünet" also means "pause" and is cognate with the Finnish word "syntyy" ("to be born"). | |||
| Latvian | pārtraukums | ||
| The Latvian word "pārtraukums" is derived from the Slavic root *prě/*pъr (through). | |||
| Lithuanian | pertrauka | ||
| Pertrauka is also used as the name for the main course in a traditional Lithuanian meal. | |||
| Macedonian | пауза | ||
| The word пауза is derived from the Proto-Slavic root *pau-, meaning "to stop". | |||
| Polish | przerwa | ||
| In Polish, "przerwa" also means "a hole", "a gap", or "a pause". | |||
| Romanian | pauză | ||
| The word "pauză" in Romanian is derived from the Greek word "pausis", meaning "cessation". It can also refer to a musical rest or a short interval of time. | |||
| Russian | сломать | ||
| The Russian word "сломать" can also mean "to ruin" or "to damage". | |||
| Serbian | пауза | ||
| The word "пауза" can also refer to a musical rest or a punctuation mark. | |||
| Slovak | prestávka | ||
| The word "prestávka" also means "transition", "intermission" or "pause". | |||
| Slovenian | odmor | ||
| The word 'odmor' is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *h₂erm- meaning 'to rest, to lie down' and is cognate with the English word 'arm'. | |||
| Ukrainian | перерву | ||
| The word 'перерву' can also mean 'intermission' or 'pause'. | |||
Break in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | বিরতি | ||
| The word "বিরতি" can also mean "pause", "interval", or "gap". | |||
| Gujarati | વિરામ | ||
| વિરામ means not only 'break' but also 'punctuation' and 'rest' in Gujarati. | |||
| Hindi | टूटना | ||
| Derived from the Sanskrit word 'trut', 'टूटना' also means 'to separate' or 'to go apart'. | |||
| Kannada | ವಿರಾಮ | ||
| "ವಿರಾಮ" (Break) in Kannada also denotes a musical time signature or punctuation, derived from Sanskrit's meaning of "to pause or rest". | |||
| Malayalam | പൊട്ടിക്കുക | ||
| Marathi | ब्रेक | ||
| The word "ब्रेक" (break) in Marathi can also mean "to take a break" or "to relax". | |||
| Nepali | ब्रेक | ||
| ब्रेक could derive from a Hindi or Marwari word meaning 'to braid', though this has not been proven | |||
| Punjabi | ਬਰੇਕ | ||
| The Punjabi word "ਬਰੇਕ" ("break") also refers to a cart used for carrying sugarcane. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | කඩන්න | ||
| "කඩන්න" is also used as a term for a small shop or store in Sinhala. | |||
| Tamil | உடைக்க | ||
| The word "உடைக்க" also means to "scatter" or "spread out". | |||
| Telugu | విచ్ఛిన్నం | ||
| Urdu | توڑ | ||
| توڑ can also mean an opening in a wall or a door. | |||
Break in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 打破 | ||
| 打破 can also mean `to destroy` or `to defeat`. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 打破 | ||
| The term ‘打破’ is often employed in various settings for expressing ideas beyond simply breaking things, ranging from achieving new milestones to shattering misconceptions. | |||
| Japanese | ブレーク | ||
| The word "ブレーク" can also mean "pause" or "intermission" in Japanese. | |||
| Korean | 단절 | ||
| The word "단절" (break) in Korean can also mean "termination" or "separation". | |||
| Mongolian | завсарлага | ||
| The word 'завсарлага' may also refer to the act of 'disassembling' or 'separating' something | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ချိုး | ||
Break in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | istirahat | ||
| The word "istirahat" originally meant "rest" in Arabic, and is related to the word "istighfar" (seeking forgiveness). | |||
| Javanese | istirahat | ||
| "Istirahat" (break) derives from "isti" (to sit) and "rahat" (comfortable), indicating a moment of relaxation during a pause. | |||
| Khmer | បំបែក | ||
| បំបែក can also mean to divide or separate, or to cause something to fall apart. | |||
| Lao | ແຕກແຍກ | ||
| Malay | rehat | ||
| "Rehat" is also used in some contexts to mean "leisure time" or "rest time". | |||
| Thai | หยุดพัก | ||
| "หยุดพัก" (break) can also mean "stop" or "pause". | |||
| Vietnamese | phá vỡ | ||
| "Phá vỡ" also means "violation" in Vietnamese. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | pahinga | ||
Break in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | fasilə | ||
| The word "fasilə" can also mean "pause" or "intermission" in Azerbaijani, reflecting its root in the Arabic word "faṣl" meaning "separation" or "interruption." | |||
| Kazakh | үзіліс | ||
| "Үзіліс" is derived from the Old Turkic word "üzül", meaning "to be separated or cut off." | |||
| Kyrgyz | тыныгуу | ||
| The word "тыныгуу" (break) in Kyrgyz can also mean "rest" or "stop". | |||
| Tajik | танаффус | ||
| The Tajik word "танаффус" is derived from the Semitic root "nfs," meaning "leave" or "end"} | |||
| Turkmen | arakesme | ||
| Uzbek | tanaffus | ||
| The word "tanaffus" originates from Arabic and also means "breathing pause" or "relaxation" in Uzbek. | |||
| Uyghur | break | ||
Break in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | haki | ||
| In Hawaiian, "haki" can also mean "to cause to happen" or "to be the cause of something occurring." | |||
| Maori | pakaru | ||
| Pakaru can also mean 'to split in two', 'to rend', or 'to cause to be broken', depending on the context. | |||
| Samoan | malepe | ||
| Samoan has two homophonous words malepe, one derives from Proto-Polynesian *matele 'to fall, collapse, die' and the other from Proto-Polynesian *malefe 'to break' | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | pahinga | ||
| The word "pahinga" in Tagalog can also refer to a rest or a pause. | |||
Break in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | p'akhiña | ||
| Guarani | pytu'u | ||
Break in International Languages
| Esperanto | rompi | ||
| The Esperanto word "rompi" is derived from the French word "rompre" and can also mean "to interrupt" or "to violate". | |||
| Latin | intermissum | ||
| "Intermissum" may also refer to "intermission" or "interruption" in Latin. | |||
Break in Others Languages
| Greek | διακοπή | ||
| The word 'Διακοπή' in Greek may also refer to an interruption or a hiatus. | |||
| Hmong | tawg | ||
| The word "tawg" in Hmong has an interesting etymology, stemming from the Proto-Hmong-Mien root "*taw" meaning "to snap". | |||
| Kurdish | şikesta | ||
| Şikesta can also refer to a broken promise or treaty in Kurdish. | |||
| Turkish | kırmak | ||
| "Kırmak" can also mean "to interrupt" or "to defeat" in Turkish. | |||
| Xhosa | ikhefu | ||
| The word 'ikhefu' can also mean 'to get lost,' and its alternate form 'ukukhefa' can refer to 'disappearing.' | |||
| Yiddish | ברעכן | ||
| The Yiddish word "ברעכן" can also mean "to vomit" or "to be nauseous." | |||
| Zulu | ukuphuka | ||
| In Zulu, "ukuphuka" also conveys a sense of "emerging from confinement" or "coming into view" | |||
| Assamese | ভঙা | ||
| Aymara | p'akhiña | ||
| Bhojpuri | तोड़ल | ||
| Dhivehi | ހަލާކުވުން | ||
| Dogri | बकफा | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | pahinga | ||
| Guarani | pytu'u | ||
| Ilocano | ibarsak | ||
| Krio | pwɛl | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | شکاندن | ||
| Maithili | विराम | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯂꯦꯞꯄꯥ | ||
| Mizo | keh | ||
| Oromo | cabsuu | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ବ୍ରେକ୍ | ||
| Quechua | pakiy | ||
| Sanskrit | भङ्गः | ||
| Tatar | тәнәфес | ||
| Tigrinya | ስበር | ||
| Tsonga | tshova | ||