break into — start suddenly
phrasal verbB2IELTS 6+neutraloccasional
to suddenly begin doing something, especially an activity or emotion
Say it like a native
Textbook Upon hearing the news, she suddenly began to cry.
Native She broke into tears when she heard.
'Break into tears/a run/a smile' is the natural way to say 'suddenly start'; the paraphrase is flat.
Pattern: break into + noun (activity or emotion)
In use
- When he heard the joke, he broke into laughter.communication
- Sometimes, when I’m nervous, I break into a sweat even if the room isn’t hot.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ He broke into to laugh.
✓ He broke into laughter. / He burst out laughing.
'Break into + noun' (tears, laughter, a run) — not 'into to + verb'.
Common collocations
break into + sudden action— tears, a run, a smile, song
Don't confuse it
Different from 'break out', which means something starts suddenly but is often used for negative events like fires or wars.
Related
- break into (enter illegally) — Another meaning of 'break into' is 'enter illegally'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.