come apart — lose emotional control
phrasal verbC1IELTS 7+neutraloccasional
To become unable to control your emotions, often as a result of stress, shock, or grief.
Say it like a native
Textbook She lost all control of her emotions following the bad news.
Native She just came apart when she heard.
'Come apart' (or 'fall apart') vividly captures someone breaking down; the paraphrase is clinical.
Pattern: come apart (emotionally/mentally/at the seams)
In use
- After hearing the news, she completely came apart and couldn't stop crying.emotions
- Some people are able to cope with adversity, while others may come apart when faced with unexpected challenges.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ He came apart from the pressure.
✓ He came apart under the pressure.
People come apart UNDER pressure, not 'from'.
Common collocations
come apart (emotionally)— under pressure, at the seams, completely, inside
Don't confuse it
Unlike the B1 sense ('break into pieces' physically), this sense is figurative and refers to a person's emotional or mental state, not a physical object.
Related
- come apart (break into pieces) — 'come apart' also has the more basic meaning 'break into pieces'; this is the advanced sense.