How to Use break off in a Sentence

break off

verb
  • Near its lowest point, still about 36 miles above the surface of the Earth, a chunk broke off and burned up.
    Joshua Sokol, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2020
  • Elliott broke off a 26-yard run on the first play and then Williams a 43-yard touchdown run on the last.
    Mike Frainie, Baltimore Sun, 2 Nov. 2024
  • Additionally, break off any foliage starting to lose its green color.
    Rebecca Jones, Southern Living, 26 Sep. 2024
  • About 95 percent of the time, simply brandishing a firearm will cause criminals to break off their attacks.
    John R. Lott Jr., National Review, 4 Mar. 2020
  • The size, in square miles, of the iceberg that just broke off Pine Island Glacier on the edge of Antarctica.
    Aj Willingham, CNN, 13 Feb. 2020
  • Rocky Mountains Plant Succulents and sedums are easy to propagate from any pieces that break off from the parent plant.
    Thad Orr, Sunset Magazine, 10 Feb. 2020
  • In the chat running down the side of the screen, teenagers who do not know each other are amicably exchanging Snapchat handles and attempting to break off into cliques.
    Kaitlyn Tiffany, The Atlantic, 24 Mar. 2020
  • To avoid programs that may do more harm than good, Rodríguez-Troncoso cautions against any that purposely break off fragments from healthy corals or fail to get the required permits.
    National Geographic, 6 Feb. 2020
  • By Sunday, a 120 square-mile chunk of ice—a little under three San Franciscos in size—had broken off the glacier’s front.
    National Geographic, 11 Feb. 2020
  • The former Oregon Duck has already broken off three runs of 30 yards or longer, and he's also proven to be dangerous in the open field as a pass-catcher.
    Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2024
  • When possible, suggest breaking off into smaller groups or initiating one-on-one conversations.
    Ludmila Praslova, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2024
  • Sam had done a master’s degree in computer science at U.W.-Madison, then broken off an engagement to his longtime girlfriend.
    Kate Folk, The New Yorker, 16 Mar. 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
  • People sit on parts of the house, and pieces break off.
    Christine Fernando, The Indianapolis Star, 2 Sep. 2020
  • 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
  • The grass will often just break off at ground level when the soil is very dry.
    Tim Johnson, chicagotribune.com, 7 Aug. 2021
  • If they are dried out and break off easily, put the plant back.
    San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Nov. 2021

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.

Last Updated: