Klryz
Pronunciation guide: IPA symbols, stress and word endings

Vowels

iːseeɪsite / ɛbedæcat
ɑːfatherɒhot (UK)ɔːlawʊput
uːtooʌcupɜːbirdəabout
eɪdayaɪmyɔɪboyaʊnow
əʊ / oʊgo (UK / US)ɪəneareəhairʊətour

Consonants that look unusual

θthinðthisʃsheʒmeasure
tʃchurchdʒjudgeŋsingjyes

p b t d k g f v s z h m n l r w sound as in ordinary English spelling.

Marks

  • ˈ main stress, before the stressed syllable: /ˈwɔːtə/ water · ˌ lighter (secondary) stress: /ˌʌndəˈstænd/ understand
  • ː a long vowel · (r) an r said only in accents that pronounce it (most American, Scottish, Irish)

Common word endings

  • -s / -es (plurals; he/she form of verbs): /s/ after voiceless sounds (cats), /z/ after voiced (dogs), /ɪz/ after s, z, sh, ch, j sounds (buses, watches). Spelling: -es after s, x, z, ch, sh; consonant + y → -ies (city → cities).
  • -ed (past): /t/ after voiceless sounds (walked), /d/ after voiced (played), /ɪd/ after t or d (wanted). Spelling: love → loved, stop → stopped, carry → carried.
  • -ing: make → making, run → running, see → seeing.
  • Irregular: go, went, gone · be, was, been · see, saw, seen · man → men · child → children · mouse → mice.
  • Older (King James) forms: -eth = -s (he loveth = he loves) · -est with “thou” (thou lovest) · spake = spoke.

English Dictionary · 107,383 entries · Sources & licences

break down

verb

Forms breaks down breaking down broke down broken down break downs

  1. verb (intransitive, of a machine, computer, vehicle, etc.) To stop functioning. “I am afraid my computer will break down if I try to run it at too high a speed.”
  2. verb (intransitive) To unexpectedly collapse, physically or in structure.
  3. verb (transitive) To intentionally demolish; to pull down.
  4. verb (intransitive) To fail, especially socially or for political reasons. “Talks broke down between Prime Minister John Doe and the opposition party.”
  5. verb (intransitive, idiomatic) To give in or give up: relent, concede, surrender. “Is it worth taking it to a repair shop, or should I just break down and buy a new one?”
  6. verb (ergative, figuratively) To render or to become unstable due to stress, to collapse physically or mentally. “She is back to work now, after she broke down the other day.”
  7. verb (ergative, figuratively) To render or to become weak and ineffective. “His authority and influence over his coordinates broke down gradually.”
  8. verb (ergative) To (cause to) decay, to decompose. “Leaves and grass will break down into compost faster if you keep them moist.”

Synonyms

come undone break apart break up take apart tear down tear up analyze catabolize crush analyse dissect lose it snap fail go bad give way die give out conk out go break crumble crumple tumble collapse decompose

Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 — from the Wiktionary entry “break down”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details