break it down
A2 neutral separable transitive
In simple words
to make something easier by showing the small parts
Meanings
1 A2
idiomatic
neutral
to explain something in a simpler, clearer way by dividing it into parts
"Can you break it down for me in plain English?"
"Break it down!"
— popular recurring phrase in music and performance culture; exact single source not specified
Grammar: separable
2 B1
idiomatic
neutral
to divide something into smaller parts for analysis or organization
"The report breaks it down by age group and region."
Grammar: separable
Usage notes
Very common in speech, teaching, business, and online communication. Also used in music and dance slang, but the explanatory sense is most frequent.
Commonly used with
problem budget steps data plan process
Forms
Base
break it down
I/you/we/they
3rd person
breaks it down
he/she/it
Past simple
broke it down
yesterday
Past participle
broken it down
have + pp
-ing form
breaking it down
continuous
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Synonyms
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