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Glite Dictionary
to break the silence

to break the silence

9 3.2
To make a sound or speak after a time of silence
  • idiom
translation icon : romper el silencio
  • After several seconds of awkward quiet, he finally spoke up to break the silence.

And he breaks the silence by saying, you can start one if you want to.

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Examples

  • "It's getting cold out here," Eliot said, finally breaking the silence.

    Fiction book (1997)

  • Once the bishops had broken the silence, they continued to speak.

    Academic text (1992)

  • I knew I would have to be the one to break the silence.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • And he breaks the silence by saying, you can start one if you want to.

    Tim Ferriss

  • "I'll take you downstairs now," Paul broke the silence as Stephen finished his coffee.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • The program has helped break the silence of speaking about sexual orientation as a verboten subject.

    Academic text (2006)

  • Pe Ell asked suddenly, breaking the silence and ending the flow of recollections.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • Sawyers waits, turning around slowly, hoping she'll say something, anything, to break the silence.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • Professor Jacob Neusner broke the silence about grade inflation at a Brown University commencement.

    Academic text (1996)

  • Nithe absentmindedly stroked the dog's head, to Cavell's delight, and broke the silence.

    Fiction book (1991)

Synonyms

to disturb
vsto break the silence
183 2.1

Interrupt someone's quiet or stop them from resting

is a sudden vocal or noisy act after a quiet period, not general annoyance
to interject
vsto break the silence
39 6.5

To say something quickly to interrupt someone

happens after quiet or pause rather than interrupting ongoing speech
to burst out
vsto break the silence
9 3.3

Suddenly say something or make a loud sound

focuses on sudden sound after quiet without emotional emphasis
to pipe up
vsto break the silence
  • Informal
6 5.9

To start speaking suddenly, often loudly or in a high voice

is the sudden making of noise or speech but without loudness emphasis
to pierce through the silence
vsto break the silence
7.1

A sudden sound, like a scream, that breaks the quiet

is the same sudden speaking or noise but in a plain neutral way

Antonyms

to be quiet
231 1.0

To stop making noise or talking

How Loud

to shout
644 1.0
to break the silence
9 3.2
to whisper
586 1.0

Surface Forms

break the silence infinitive
breaking the silence present participle
breaks the silence third person singular
broke the silence past
broken the silence past participle

Morphology

break + the + silence

The meaning is directly derivable from combining 'break' (to interrupt or end) with 'silence' (a period of no sound); a learner who knows both words can infer it means to interrupt a period of quiet by speaking or making noise. This is a common compositional metaphor found across many languages and follows standard English patterns, so it should be understandable to a B1 learner.

Etymology

The idiom break the silence comes from a simple picture: imagine a very quiet room and one sound suddenly breaking the calm silence like a crack in glass. That's why it means 'to make a noise or speak after a period of quiet'.