Common mistakes
Brake or break: two words with different jobs
Sign in to saveA car can brake at a crossing, but a glass can break if it falls. The words sound the same, so the meaning has to guide the spelling.
Choose brake for slowing or stopping a vehicle and break for damage, interruption, or rest.
Read and practice
Read the examples and try the written questions in this guide. Listening recordings are not available for this lesson yet.
Try the written questions
brake / break /breɪk/ / /breɪk/
The short answer
Use brake for the part of a vehicle that slows it or for the action of slowing it. Use break when something splits, stops, or pauses.
The driver braked before the bridge, but a branch broke in the wind.
Why it works: Braked describes slowing the vehicle. Broke describes the branch separating into pieces.
5 more examples
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The bus driver braked slowly near the school gate.
Braked means that the driver used the vehicle's brakes to reduce speed.
Not this:The bus driver
broke slowlynear the school gate. What changes: Broke does not mean slowed a vehicle. It would need a different object or context. -
Press the brake pedal before the sharp bend.
A brake pedal is part of a vehicle's braking system.
Not this:Press the
break pedalbefore the sharp bend. What changes: The vehicle part is called a brake pedal, so break is the wrong spelling. -
Do not break the seal until you reach home.
Break means cause the seal to split or stop being intact.
Not this:Do not
brake the sealuntil you reach home. What changes: Brake concerns slowing a vehicle and cannot describe damaging a seal. -
We took a ten-minute break after the workshop.
A break is a short pause in an activity.
Not this:We took a
ten-minute brakeafter the workshop. What changes: Brake is not the word for a rest period. Use break for a pause. -
The cyclist braked when the traffic light changed.
The cyclist slowed or stopped by using the bicycle's brake.
Not this:The
cyclist brokewhen the traffic light changed. What changes: Broke does not say that the cyclist slowed down. It needs another meaning, such as a broken object.
Read the full guide
Start with the situation. If it involves slowing a car, bicycle, train, or other vehicle, choose brake. If the sentence concerns damage, a pause, a rule, or an interruption, choose break.
Use brake for slowing a vehicle
A brake is the equipment that helps a vehicle slow down or stop. You can use the noun after the, as in the brake pedal, or use the verb when a driver or rider slows down.
Nadia braked before the roundabout.
Use break for damage or stopping
Break usually describes something coming apart, becoming damaged, or stopping its normal state. A plate can break, a machine can break down, and a person can break a promise.
The mug broke when it slipped from the shelf.
Use break for a pause
Break is also the usual noun for a pause from work, study, travel, or conversation. Take a break means stop an activity for a short time. This meaning has no connection with vehicles.
Let's take a short break before the next exercise.
Watch the past forms
Brake is regular: brake, braked, braked. Break is irregular: break, broke, broken. The difference remains clear in the past tense, even though brake and break sound alike in the present.
The driver braked at the crossing. The glass broke on the floor.
Choose from the setting
A rider needs to slow down on a wet road. Which spelling follows should?
Use brake: The rider should brake gently. The sentence is about reducing the speed of a vehicle.
Before you go
Remember this
Write brake for slowing or stopping a vehicle. Write break for damage, interruption, or a pause. In the past, use braked for a vehicle action and broke for the other meanings.
Practice with the written examples
You can practice with the written questions in the Learn tab. Each answer includes an explanation.
Try the written questionsListening test not available yet
This lesson does not have the recordings needed for a listening test. Use the written questions in the guide to check your understanding.
Try the written questionsQuestions about "Brake or break: two words with different jobs"
What is the difference between brake and break?
Brake means slow or stop a vehicle, or the device used to do that. Break means damage something, interrupt something, or pause from an activity.
The bus driver braked slowly near the school gate.
Do brake and break sound the same?
Yes. Brake and break are homophones, so both are pronounced /breɪk/. Use the sentence meaning to decide which spelling you need.
The bus driver broke slowly near the school gate.
Is brake a noun or a verb?
Brake can be both. The brake pedal is a noun, while brake gently is a verb instruction to slow a vehicle.
Press the brake pedal before the sharp bend.
When does break mean rest?
Break means a short pause in phrases such as take a break, lunch break, and coffee break. It does not refer to vehicle equipment in these phrases.
Press the break pedal before the sharp bend.
What are the past forms of brake and break?
Brake is regular: braked is its past form. Break is irregular: its past form is broke and its past participle is broken.
Do not break the seal until you reach home.