Meaning trap
break up
disrupt a gathering
To cause a group of people who have gathered together, especially for a meeting, protest, or other event, to disperse or stop their activity, often by force or official order.
Don't mix these meanings
Same phrase, different job.
To cause a group of people who have gathered together, especially for a meeting, protest, or other event, to disperse or stop their activity, often by force or official order.
'break up' also has the more basic meaning 'end a romantic relationship'; this is the advanced sense.
Hear it in context
Notice where the phrase sounds natural.
- The police were called in to break up the demonstration before it turned violent.society
- In some countries, the government may break up public gatherings if they are considered a threat to security or public order.IELTS speaking
Fix the pattern
Pattern: break up [object: gathering/event/crowd]
WrongSecurity broke up it.
RightSecurity broke it up.
With a pronoun, the object goes in the middle: 'break it up'.
Patternbreak up [object: gathering/event/crowd]
Use it right
Choose the version that sounds natural in speech.
'Break up' is the natural verb for forcing a crowd to disperse; 'dispersed the crowd' is formal.
Build natural chunks
Words that usually travel with it.
break up + gatheringthe fightthe crowdthe partythe protest
Don't confuse it
This sense is different from 'break up' meaning to end a romantic relationship (B1) or to separate something into pieces (B1). Here, it refers specifically to dispersing groups of people, often by intervention.
Related
- break up (end a romantic relationship) — 'break up' also has the more basic meaning 'end a romantic relationship'; this is the advanced sense.