breakdown

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English

Etymology

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Noun

breakdown (plural breakdowns)

  1. A failure, particularly mechanical; something that has failed
    We saw a breakdown by the side of the road.
  2. A physical collapse or lapse of mental stability
    After so much stress, he suffered a breakdown and simply gave up.
  3. Listing, division or categorization in great detail
    Looking at the breakdown of the budget, I see a few items we could cut.
  4. (film, television) A detailed description of a forthcoming project, including the characters and roles required.
  5. (chemistry) Breaking of chemical bonds within a compound to produce simpler compounds or elements.
  6. A musical technique by which the music is stripped down, becoming simpler, varying in heaviness depending on the genre.
    • 1992, En Vogue, My Lovin' (You're Never Gonna Get It) (song)
      And now it's time for a breakdown!
    • 1999, CMJ New Music Report (volume 59, number 631, page 28)
      The fired-up foursome takes itself very seriously, singing politically charged lyrics, which, in the tradition of Strife and Damnation AD, are strategically placed in the middle of slamming, moshable breakdowns.
  7. (sports) A loss of organization (of the parts of a system).
    • 2011 September 18, Ben Dirs, “Rugby World Cup 2011: England 41-10 Georgia”, in BBC Sport‎[1]:
      Georgia, ranked 16th in the world, dominated the breakdown before half-time and forced England into a host of infringements, but fly-half Merab Kvirikashvili missed three penalties.
  8. (US, dated) A noisy, rapid, shuffling dance engaged in competitively by a number of persons or pairs in succession, common in Southern United States African American music.
  9. (US, dated) Any crude, noisy dance performed by shuffling the feet, usually by one person at a time.
    • (Can we date this quote by New Eng. Tales and provide title, author’s full name, and other details?)
      Don't clear out when the quadrilles are over, for we are going to have a breakdown to wind up with.
  10. (US) Any rapid bluegrass dance tune, especially featuring a five-string banjo.
    'Foggy Mountain Breakdown'
    • 1893, Mark Twain "The Californian's Tale", in The $30,000 Bequest and Other Stories (1906)
      Towards nine the three miners said that as they had brought their instruments they might as well tune up, for the boys and girls would soon be arriving now, and hungry for a good old fashioned breakdown. A fiddle, a banjo, and a clarinet - these were the instruments.
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  11. (music) The percussion break of songs chosen by a DJ for use in hip-hop music.

Synonyms

Derived terms

Terms derived from breakdown

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Translations

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

See also

References

  • (The percussion break of songs chosen by a DJ for use in hip-hop music.) 2001. The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music: North America. Garland Publishing. Ellen Koskoff (Ed.). Pg. 694.
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