Things that Break - Example sentences

This article deals with things that break. More specifically, in this article you can find nouns to which “broken” is often applied. This article contains phrases related to things breaking and being broken. It’s meant to give you some idea of to what kind of nouns “broken” is often applied.

This page is far from complete, but it’s a start if you want to dive further into the topic.

1. Broken bones

The most typical of “things that break” are probably bones! These verbs and phrases apply to all kinds of broken bones: arms, legs, collarbones, ankles, wings and much more.

#	Finnish	English
1	Jalkani on murtunut.	My leg is broken.
1	Jalkani murtui kolarissa.	My leg broke in the car crash.
1	Luu murtuu helposti.	The bone breaks easily.
1	Hän mursi jalkansa.	She broke her leg.
1	Älä murra niskaasi.	Don’t break your neck.
2	Minulla on jalka poikki.	My leg is broken.
3	Jalkasi katkesi kolarissa.	Your leg snapped in the car crash.
3	Hän katkaisi jalkansa.	She broke her leg. (snap!)
4	Luoti pirstoi jalkani.	The bullet shattered my leg.

2. Broken heart

Finnish	English
Hän särki sydämeni.	She broke my heart.
Sydämeni särkyy.	My heart breaks.
Sydämeni on särkynyt.	My heart is broken.
Sydämeni on särkynyt surusta.	My heart was crushed by grief.
Sydämeni murtui surusta.	My heart broke with grief.
Sydämeni on murskana.	My heart is badly crushed.

3. Broken devices and machines

The examples below are all centered around phones breaking, but you can replace the noun with any other device or machine, e.g. a camera, tv, electric toothbrush, tractor or car. You could also check out the separate articles on computer problems, household problems and car problems.

Finnish	English
Puhelimeni meni rikki.	My phone broke.
Puhelimeni hajosi.	My phone broke down.
Puhelimeni rikkoutui.	My phone broke.
Puhelin vaurioitui kuljetuksessa.	The phone was damaged during transport.
Puhelin vioittuu helposti.	The phone is easily damaged.
Hän rikkoi puhelimeni.	She broke my phone.
Hän hajotti puhelimeni.	She broke my phone.
Hän murskasi puhelimeni.	She smashed my phone.
Hän naarmutti puhelintani.	She scratched my phone.

4. Broken glass

The glass of vases, mirrors, windows, cups and cars are things that break easily.

Finnish	English
Lasi meni säröille.	The glass cracked.
Lasi meni sirpaleiki.	The glass went shattered.
Lasi meni pirstaleiksi.	The glass was broken.
Lasi meni säpäleiksi.	The glass went to smithereens.
Lasi meni siruiksi.	The window broke into shards.
Lasi hajosi tuhansiksi säpäleiksi.	The glass shattered into thousands of splinters.
Lasi särkyi pirstaleiksi.	The glass shattered to pieces.
Hän särki ikkunan pirstaleiksi.	He shattered the window.
Hän särki ikkunan pirstoiksi.	He broke the window to pieces.
Hän iski ikkunan pirstaleiksi.	He smashed the window to smithereens.
Hän löi ikkunan pirstaleiksi.	He hit the window to smithereens.
Hän löi ikkunan pirstoiksi.	He broke the window into fragments.
Hän löi ikkunan siruiksi.	He hit the window into shards.
Lasi on säpäleinä.	The glass is in pieces.
Peili oli pirstaleina.	The mirror was shattered.
Lasi on pirstana.	The glass is in fragments.

5. Broken toys

Finnish	English
Koira repi lelun rikki.	The dog tore the toy apart.
Lapsi puree lelut rikki.	The child chews the toys broken.
Lelu on pohjasta rikki.	The toy is broken from the bottom.
Lelu rikkoontuu helposti.	The toy breaks easily.
Lapsi rikkoi lelun.	The child broke the toy.
Lapsi sai lelun hajalle.	The child broke the toy apart.
Hän talloi lelun rikki.	She broke the toy by stepping on it.

6. Broken relations

Relationships, marriages, families and friendships can be broken up. They’re all bonds or ties between people that can be broken.

Finnish	English
Perheemme on rikki.	Our family is broken.
Heidän välinsä rikkoutuivat.	Their relationship fell apart.
Hänen avioliittonsa kariutui.	His marriage failed, broke up.
Avioliitto hajosi.	The marriage broke up.
Kihlaus purkautui.	The engagement was canceled, broken up.
Välimme katkesivat lopullisesti.	Our relationship broke down forever.
Hän katkaisi välit lopullisesti.	She broke off all contact for good.
Hän pani välit poikki.	He broke off all contact.
Hän lopetti suhteen.	He ended the relationship.
Sinä hajotat meidän perheemme.	You’re breaking up our family.
Seurustelu ei hajota kaveripiiriäni.	Dating won’t disband my circle of friends.
Hän katkaisi diplomaattiset suhteet.	She broke off diplomatic relations.

7. Broken arrangements

Under broken arrangements, I’m including among other things broken agreements, contracts, plans, rules, vows, and promises. It just seemed to make the most sense that way.

Finnish	English
Hän rikkoi lakia.	She broke the law.
Hän rikkoo koulun sääntöjä.	She broke the school rules.
Hän rikkoi lupauksensa.	She broke her promise.
Hän rikkoi sopimusta.	She broke the contract.
Sopimus raukesi.	The contract fell through, broke off.
Sopimus purkautui	The contract was terminated.
Kauppa purkautui.	The deal was disbanded, dissolved.
Hanke kariutui.	The project fell through, failed.
Suunnitelma kariutui.	The project fell through, failed.
Suunnitelma romutettiin ilman syytä.	The plan was scrapped without cause.
Koko suunnitelma romahti.	This whole plan collapsed.
Hän katkaisi neuvottelut.	She broke off the negotiations.
Neuvottelut katkesivat.	The negotiations broke down, were severed.
Neuvottelut kariutuivat.	The negotiations broke down, fell apart.
Onnettomuus tuhosi hänen uransa.	The accident destroyed her career.

8. Broken systems

In this category, you can find ways to talk about broken systems, networks, connections and projects.

Finnish	English
Koko järjestelmä luhistui.	The whole system collapsed.
Se tuhosi koko ekosysteemin.	It destroyed the entire ecosystem.
Muutos pirstoo poliittista kenttää.	The change fragments the political field.
Uudistus pirstoo terveyspalvelut.	The reform fragments health services.
Poliisi hajotti rikollisuusverkoston.	The police dismantled the crime network.
He yrittivät murtaa kauppasaartoa.	They tried to break the embargo.
Puhelu katkeaa heti.	The call breaks off immediately.
Sähkö meni poikki.	Electricity went off.
Mitä teet, jos sähköt katkeavat?	What do you do if the power goes out?
Sähköt katkaistiin.	The electricity was cut off.
Hän katkaisi nettiyhteyden.	She disconnected the internet.

9. Broken mental things

You can also break mental things: trust, will, dreams, spirit, or other abstract things: silence, peace.

Finnish	English
Jokin sisälläni murtui.	Something inside of me broke.
Hän mursi tytön tahdon väkivallalla.	She broke the girl’s will with violence.
Onnettomuus murskasi unelmani.	The accident crushed my dreams.
Hän pirstoi unelmani palasiin.	She shattered my dreams.
Toiveemme murskattiin.	Our hopes were shattered.
Todellisuus romuttaa haaveet.	Reality destroys dreams.
Kansan toiveet ovat romahtaneet.	People’s hopes have collapsed.
Älä särje illuusiotani.	Don’t break my illusion.
Se luhistaa uskon tulevaisuuteen.	It destroys faith in the future.
Ajatus katkesi taas.	I lost my train of thought again.
Mikään ei hajota heidän keskittymistään.	Nothing disrupts their concentration.
Teoria romuttaa vanhan käsityksen.	The theory debunks the old belief.
Hän murskasi kaiken vastarinnan.	She broke all resistance.
Se hajotti Suomen kansan yhtenäisyyttä.	It destroyed the unity of the Finnish people.
Se särki puolueen yhtenäisyyden.	It destroyed the unity of the party.
Äkkiä hiljaisuus rikkoontuu.	Suddenly the silence was broken.
Laukaus särki hiljaisuuden.	The shot broke the silence.

That’s it for phrases about things that break regularly. I hope this list gives you a boost in the right direction when expressing things that break or are broken!