"break someone's heart" meaning in English

See break someone's heart in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Verb

Audio: en-au-break someone's heart.ogg Forms: breaks someone's heart [present, singular, third-person], breaking someone's heart [participle, present], broke someone's heart [past], broken someone's heart [participle, past]
Etymology: From Middle English breke (my) harte. Etymology templates: {{inh|en|enm||breke (my) harte}} Middle English breke (my) harte Head templates: {{en-verb|break<,,broke,broken> someone's heart}} break someone's heart (third-person singular simple present breaks someone's heart, present participle breaking someone's heart, simple past broke someone's heart, past participle broken someone's heart)
  1. (idiomatic) To cause a person to feel grief, disappointment or sadness. Tags: idiomatic Categories (topical): Emotions Related terms: heartbreak [noun], heartbreaker [noun], heartbreaking (english: of an agent) [adjective], heartbroken (english: of a patient) [adjective], broken heart [noun], brokenhearted [adjective], brokenheartedly [adverb], brokenheartedness [noun], bless someone's heart, win someone's heart Translations (to cause a person to feel grief or sadness): սիրտը կոտրել (sirtə kotrel) (Armenian), 打碎...的心 (dǎsuì... de xīn) (english: break...'s heart) (Chinese Mandarin), zlomit srdce [with-dative] (Czech), (iemand zijn/haar) hart breken (Dutch), särkeä jonkun sydän (Finnish), briser le cœur (à) (French), (jemandes) Herz brechen (German), दिल तोड़ना (dil toṛnā) (Hindi), accorare (Italian), spezzare il cuore a qualcuno (Italian), 心を壊す (kokoro o kowasu) (alt: こころをこわす) (Japanese), złamać serce [perfective] (Polish), partir o coração de (Portuguese), разбива́ть се́рдце (razbivátʹ sérdce) [imperfective] (Russian), partirle a alguien el corazón (Spanish), partir el alma (Spanish), krossa någons hjärta (Swedish), kalbini kırmak (Turkish), làm tan nát trái tim... (english: break...'s heart) (Vietnamese), làm...đau khổ (Vietnamese)

Inflected forms

{
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "",
        "4": "breke (my) harte"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English breke (my) harte",
      "name": "inh"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "From Middle English breke (my) harte.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "breaks someone's heart",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "breaking someone's heart",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "broke someone's heart",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "broken someone's heart",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "break<,,broke,broken> someone's heart"
      },
      "expansion": "break someone's heart (third-person singular simple present breaks someone's heart, present participle breaking someone's heart, simple past broke someone's heart, past participle broken someone's heart)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Armenian terms with redundant script codes",
          "parents": [
            "Terms with redundant script codes",
            "Entry maintenance"
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          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English light verb constructions",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English predicates",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Entries with translation boxes",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Armenian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Czech translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Dutch translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Finnish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with French translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with German translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Hindi translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Italian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Japanese translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Mandarin translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Polish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Portuguese translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Russian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Spanish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Swedish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Turkish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Vietnamese translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Emotions",
          "orig": "en:Emotions",
          "parents": [
            "Mind",
            "Human",
            "All topics",
            "Fundamental"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1976, Elton John (lyrics and music), “Don't Go Breaking My Heart”, performed by Elton John ft. Kiki Dee:",
          "text": "Don't go breaking my heart / I couldn't if I tried / Honey if I get restless / Baby you're not that kind",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2003 February 7, Alfred Gough, Miles Millar, directed by David Dobkin, Shanghai Knights, spoken by Chon Wang (Jackie Chan):",
          "text": "If you break her heart, I'll break your legs.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2010, “Baby”, performed by Justin Bieber ft. Ludacris:",
          "text": "\"We're just friends,\" what are you sayin'? / Said \"there's another,\" and looked right in my eyes / My first love broke my heart for the first time",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2020, Dua Lipa, Ali Tamposi, Stefan Johnson, Jordan K. Johnson, Andrew Watt, Andrew Farriss, Michael Hutchence, “Break My Heart”, in Future Nostalgia, performed by Dua Lipa:",
          "text": "Oh no, I was doin' better alone / But when you said \"Hello\" / I know that was the end of it all / I should've stayed at home / 'Cause now there ain't no letting you go / Am I falling in love / With the one that could break my heart?",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To cause a person to feel grief, disappointment or sadness."
      ],
      "id": "en-break_someone's_heart-en-verb-Fmdgkn-d",
      "links": [
        [
          "grief",
          "grief"
        ],
        [
          "disappointment",
          "disappointment"
        ],
        [
          "sadness",
          "sadness"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) To cause a person to feel grief, disappointment or sadness."
      ],
      "related": [
        {
          "tags": [
            "noun"
          ],
          "word": "heartbreak"
        },
        {
          "tags": [
            "noun"
          ],
          "word": "heartbreaker"
        },
        {
          "english": "of an agent",
          "tags": [
            "adjective"
          ],
          "word": "heartbreaking"
        },
        {
          "english": "of a patient",
          "tags": [
            "adjective"
          ],
          "word": "heartbroken"
        },
        {
          "tags": [
            "noun"
          ],
          "word": "broken heart"
        },
        {
          "tags": [
            "adjective"
          ],
          "word": "brokenhearted"
        },
        {
          "tags": [
            "adverb"
          ],
          "word": "brokenheartedly"
        },
        {
          "tags": [
            "noun"
          ],
          "word": "brokenheartedness"
        },
        {
          "word": "bless someone's heart"
        },
        {
          "word": "win someone's heart"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "code": "hy",
          "lang": "Armenian",
          "roman": "sirtə kotrel",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "word": "սիրտը կոտրել"
        },
        {
          "code": "cmn",
          "english": "break...'s heart",
          "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
          "roman": "dǎsuì... de xīn",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "word": "打碎...的心"
        },
        {
          "code": "cs",
          "lang": "Czech",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "tags": [
            "with-dative"
          ],
          "word": "zlomit srdce"
        },
        {
          "code": "nl",
          "lang": "Dutch",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "word": "(iemand zijn/haar) hart breken"
        },
        {
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "word": "särkeä jonkun sydän"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "word": "briser le cœur (à)"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "word": "(jemandes) Herz brechen"
        },
        {
          "code": "hi",
          "lang": "Hindi",
          "roman": "dil toṛnā",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "word": "दिल तोड़ना"
        },
        {
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "word": "accorare"
        },
        {
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "word": "spezzare il cuore a qualcuno"
        },
        {
          "alt": "こころをこわす",
          "code": "ja",
          "lang": "Japanese",
          "roman": "kokoro o kowasu",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "word": "心を壊す"
        },
        {
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "tags": [
            "perfective"
          ],
          "word": "złamać serce"
        },
        {
          "code": "pt",
          "lang": "Portuguese",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "word": "partir o coração de"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "razbivátʹ sérdce",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "tags": [
            "imperfective"
          ],
          "word": "разбива́ть се́рдце"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "note": "разби́ть се́рдце impf (razbítʹ sérdce) (+ dative case or possessive pronouns used)",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "word": "partirle a alguien el corazón"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "word": "partir el alma"
        },
        {
          "code": "sv",
          "lang": "Swedish",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "word": "krossa någons hjärta"
        },
        {
          "code": "tr",
          "lang": "Turkish",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "word": "kalbini kırmak"
        },
        {
          "code": "vi",
          "english": "break...'s heart",
          "lang": "Vietnamese",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "word": "làm tan nát trái tim..."
        },
        {
          "code": "vi",
          "lang": "Vietnamese",
          "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
          "word": "làm...đau khổ"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "en-au-break someone's heart.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/b/b8/En-au-break_someone%27s_heart.ogg/En-au-break_someone%27s_heart.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/En-au-break_someone%27s_heart.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "word": "break someone's heart"
}
{
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "",
        "4": "breke (my) harte"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English breke (my) harte",
      "name": "inh"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "From Middle English breke (my) harte.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "breaks someone's heart",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "breaking someone's heart",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "broke someone's heart",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "broken someone's heart",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "break<,,broke,broken> someone's heart"
      },
      "expansion": "break someone's heart (third-person singular simple present breaks someone's heart, present participle breaking someone's heart, simple past broke someone's heart, past participle broken someone's heart)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "related": [
    {
      "tags": [
        "noun"
      ],
      "word": "heartbreak"
    },
    {
      "tags": [
        "noun"
      ],
      "word": "heartbreaker"
    },
    {
      "english": "of an agent",
      "tags": [
        "adjective"
      ],
      "word": "heartbreaking"
    },
    {
      "english": "of a patient",
      "tags": [
        "adjective"
      ],
      "word": "heartbroken"
    },
    {
      "tags": [
        "noun"
      ],
      "word": "broken heart"
    },
    {
      "tags": [
        "adjective"
      ],
      "word": "brokenhearted"
    },
    {
      "tags": [
        "adverb"
      ],
      "word": "brokenheartedly"
    },
    {
      "tags": [
        "noun"
      ],
      "word": "brokenheartedness"
    },
    {
      "word": "bless someone's heart"
    },
    {
      "word": "win someone's heart"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "Armenian terms with redundant script codes",
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
        "English idioms",
        "English lemmas",
        "English light verb constructions",
        "English multiword terms",
        "English predicates",
        "English terms derived from Middle English",
        "English terms inherited from Middle English",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English verbs",
        "Entries with translation boxes",
        "Pages with 1 entry",
        "Pages with entries",
        "Terms with Armenian translations",
        "Terms with Czech translations",
        "Terms with Dutch translations",
        "Terms with Finnish translations",
        "Terms with French translations",
        "Terms with German translations",
        "Terms with Hindi translations",
        "Terms with Italian translations",
        "Terms with Japanese translations",
        "Terms with Mandarin translations",
        "Terms with Polish translations",
        "Terms with Portuguese translations",
        "Terms with Russian translations",
        "Terms with Spanish translations",
        "Terms with Swedish translations",
        "Terms with Turkish translations",
        "Terms with Vietnamese translations",
        "en:Emotions"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1976, Elton John (lyrics and music), “Don't Go Breaking My Heart”, performed by Elton John ft. Kiki Dee:",
          "text": "Don't go breaking my heart / I couldn't if I tried / Honey if I get restless / Baby you're not that kind",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2003 February 7, Alfred Gough, Miles Millar, directed by David Dobkin, Shanghai Knights, spoken by Chon Wang (Jackie Chan):",
          "text": "If you break her heart, I'll break your legs.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2010, “Baby”, performed by Justin Bieber ft. Ludacris:",
          "text": "\"We're just friends,\" what are you sayin'? / Said \"there's another,\" and looked right in my eyes / My first love broke my heart for the first time",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2020, Dua Lipa, Ali Tamposi, Stefan Johnson, Jordan K. Johnson, Andrew Watt, Andrew Farriss, Michael Hutchence, “Break My Heart”, in Future Nostalgia, performed by Dua Lipa:",
          "text": "Oh no, I was doin' better alone / But when you said \"Hello\" / I know that was the end of it all / I should've stayed at home / 'Cause now there ain't no letting you go / Am I falling in love / With the one that could break my heart?",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To cause a person to feel grief, disappointment or sadness."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "grief",
          "grief"
        ],
        [
          "disappointment",
          "disappointment"
        ],
        [
          "sadness",
          "sadness"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) To cause a person to feel grief, disappointment or sadness."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "en-au-break someone's heart.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/b/b8/En-au-break_someone%27s_heart.ogg/En-au-break_someone%27s_heart.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/En-au-break_someone%27s_heart.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "hy",
      "lang": "Armenian",
      "roman": "sirtə kotrel",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "word": "սիրտը կոտրել"
    },
    {
      "code": "cmn",
      "english": "break...'s heart",
      "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
      "roman": "dǎsuì... de xīn",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "word": "打碎...的心"
    },
    {
      "code": "cs",
      "lang": "Czech",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "tags": [
        "with-dative"
      ],
      "word": "zlomit srdce"
    },
    {
      "code": "nl",
      "lang": "Dutch",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "word": "(iemand zijn/haar) hart breken"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "word": "särkeä jonkun sydän"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "word": "briser le cœur (à)"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "word": "(jemandes) Herz brechen"
    },
    {
      "code": "hi",
      "lang": "Hindi",
      "roman": "dil toṛnā",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "word": "दिल तोड़ना"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "word": "accorare"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "word": "spezzare il cuore a qualcuno"
    },
    {
      "alt": "こころをこわす",
      "code": "ja",
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "roman": "kokoro o kowasu",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "word": "心を壊す"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "tags": [
        "perfective"
      ],
      "word": "złamać serce"
    },
    {
      "code": "pt",
      "lang": "Portuguese",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "word": "partir o coração de"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "razbivátʹ sérdce",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "tags": [
        "imperfective"
      ],
      "word": "разбива́ть се́рдце"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "note": "разби́ть се́рдце impf (razbítʹ sérdce) (+ dative case or possessive pronouns used)",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "word": "partirle a alguien el corazón"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "word": "partir el alma"
    },
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "word": "krossa någons hjärta"
    },
    {
      "code": "tr",
      "lang": "Turkish",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "word": "kalbini kırmak"
    },
    {
      "code": "vi",
      "english": "break...'s heart",
      "lang": "Vietnamese",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "word": "làm tan nát trái tim..."
    },
    {
      "code": "vi",
      "lang": "Vietnamese",
      "sense": "to cause a person to feel grief or sadness",
      "word": "làm...đau khổ"
    }
  ],
  "word": "break someone's heart"
}

Download raw JSONL data for break someone's heart meaning in English (7.1kB)


This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-11-06 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-10-02 using wiktextract (fbeafe8 and 7f03c9b). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.