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break through

verb

intr to penetrate
intr, adverb to achieve success, make a discovery, etc, esp after lengthy efforts

noun

a significant development or discovery, esp in science
the penetration of an enemy's defensive position or line in depth and strength

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Idioms and Phrases

Penetrate a barrier or obstruction, as in They broke through the wall to get into the vault , or It won't be long before we break through the code and map all human genes . Used literally for going through a physical barrier since about 1400, this phrase began to be used figuratively in the late 1500s.

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

The drug, he told her, had finally broken through his English reserve: “It was the first time I could really cry.”

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“I hope it’s not getting lost on why we’re celebrating this day, because somebody’s got to break through.”

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The Stanford University Department of Public Safety, the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office and the Palo Alto Police Department responded, breaking through the barricades and entering at about 7 a.m.

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They should have scored again when Freddie Steward broke through and fed Dan Kelly, but with the line at his mercy, the centre inexplicably fumbled forward and the chance was lost.

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Yet he kept finding ways to break through, including hitting a home run at Dodger Stadium in the 2002 City Invitational final.

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Related Words

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

breakthrough breaktime

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