How to Use break off in a Sentence

break off

verb
  • People sit on parts of the house, and pieces break off.
    Christine Fernando, The Indianapolis Star, 2 Sep. 2020
  • Damaged ends will break off and make your hair shorter!
    Tomoko Takeda Canel, Seventeen, 15 Oct. 2020
  • The bars break off easily for small bites, and are filled with all sorts of good things.
    Lisa Jhung, Outside Online, 1 Oct. 2020
  • Just take dry twigs sitting on the forest floor and don't break off fresh branches.
    Matt Jancer, Wired, 17 Sep. 2020
  • Portland will take quite a bit of momentum into the break off that.
    oregonlive, 1 Aug. 2020
  • The tops of trees and major branches can break off at the weak points caused by the insect feeding.
    Tim Johnson, chicagotribune.com, 22 Aug. 2020
  • Amir Johnson has the potential to break off big plays as the new starter at running back.
    J.c. Carnahan, orlandosentinel.com, 8 Sep. 2020
  • November is a time when bad relationships might break off or when your life could be in a state of flux.
    oregonlive, 30 July 2020
  • The stems can break off easily, so install it in a place with limited traffic.
    Lisa Boone, Star Tribune, 22 Sep. 2020
  • Or to break off a date to run home and rescue Castle Blackfinger.
    John Anderson, WSJ, 13 Aug. 2020
  • As comets pass into the inner solar system on their journeys, the sun heats them, causing particles of frozen dust to break off into meteors.
    Courtney Sexton, Smithsonian Magazine, 10 Aug. 2020
  • When a starfish is under stress from a predatory attack, this hormone is secreted, stimulating a muscle at the base of the animal’s arm that allows the arm to break off.
    Elizabeth Rayne, Ars Technica, 14 Sep. 2024
  • Family members of dozens of victims of police violence will break off on a separate march to the Department of Justice.
    Washington Post, 22 Aug. 2020
  • An Italian woman surfing an island break off the west coast of Sumatra died in a freak accident when a swordfish impaled her, according to reports.
    Greg Wehner, Fox News, 22 Oct. 2024
  • The Wolverines were able to break off two big plays but couldn’t capitalize near the red zone, resulting in opportunities for Dilalla.
    cleveland, 10 Oct. 2020
  • The film was broken off from the rest of the film shot for that day.
    Ryan Gajewski, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 Sep. 2023
  • Four teal break off a big mob and fly up the guts of the spread.
    Natalie Krebs, Outdoor Life, 19 June 2024
  • This leads us to episode 4, where the season breaks off and the show breaks down.
    Tom Gliatto, Peoplemag, 16 Nov. 2023
  • Icebergs are large chunks of ice that break off of glaciers and float in the ocean.
    Caitlin O'Kane, CBS News, 20 June 2023
  • Shards of steel wool can break off and become lodged in the grain lines.
    Jeanne Huber, Washington Post, 22 Aug. 2022
  • Alas, the Good Grips brush is still a pro at breaking off dirt and grime.
    John Thompson, Men's Health, 7 July 2023
  • Most pups are going to lose sight of deer and break off.
    Joe Genzel, Outdoor Life, 20 Nov. 2020
  • Don’t pick up the entire piece of bread; break off a small piece and eat it.
    Jenisha Watts, The Atlantic, 13 Sep. 2023
  • Keep in mind in the last decade, 12 blocks of ice the size of the state of Rhode Island have broken off the South Pole.
    NBC News, 13 Oct. 2024
  • Its rack should have been a 5x4, but two tines had broken off down to 4x3.
    Bryan Hendricks, arkansasonline.com, 3 Dec. 2023
  • Neeva doesn’t have to break off a lot of the search market share to do well.
    David Doty, Forbes, 28 June 2021
  • Do not twist or jerk the bug, to avoid causing the mouthparts to break off and remain in the skin.
    Laura Schulte, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 30 June 2021
  • That the solution is autarky and to just break off ties.
    Bytristan Bove, Fortune, 2 Oct. 2022
  • That caused the branches attached to the dead cell to break off and start clusters of their own.
    Quanta Magazine, 22 Sep. 2021
  • The top of the tree went through the windshield, with the impact causing a section of it to break off inside the van.
    Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 17 Sep. 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'break off.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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