Expresses an abrupt onset of events (e.g., conflicts, outbreaks) or escape from confinement.

To convey that something begins unexpectedly with force or intensity, often to alert listeners about danger or change.

During a conflict when fighting starts, during natural disasters like fire or earthquake, and when prisoners break out of custody.

News reporting, emergency announcements, medical descriptions, historical accounts, everyday conversation describing unexpected incidents.

break out

break out

fighting, a fire, prison escape, hives, allergic reaction

• suddenly
• violence breaks out
• war broke out
• outbreak of disease

• erupt
• start suddenly
• get underway

Incorrect preposition: do not say ‘break out OF a disease’; use ‘in a disease’.

break down (collapse), break up (separate relations)

Remember that the verb is intransitive – you cannot pass an object like *The war was broken out; it must appear as simply ‘war broke out.’

• outbreak (noun)

Carries a dramatic, often negative connotation indicating sudden upheaval or health issue.

Creates urgency and alarm by signaling unexpected escalation of events or conditions.

A fire broke out in the kitchen.

This phrasal verb is often used to describe sudden and intense events, and it is essential to understand its intransitive nature to avoid common mistakes.

break out in a cold sweat