give someone a break
give someone a break verb: to stop harassing or demanding from someone.
Verb
give someone a break (third-person singular simple present gives someone a break, present participle giving someone a break, simple past gave someone a break, past participle given someone a break)
- To stop harassing or demanding from someone.
- “Oh, give me a break, sport. You want to pick my brain but you're not going ^([sic]) give me anything in return? What's up with that?”2003, Alecia Alexander, Everybody's a Critic, page 105
- Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: To allow someone a respite.
- Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: To provide someone with an opportunity for advancement.
Forms of give someone a break
| third-person singular present | gives someone a break |
|---|---|
| present participle | giving someone a break |
| past | gave someone a break |
| past participle | given someone a break |
Questions about give someone a break
- What does give someone a break mean?
- Give someone a break means to stop harassing or demanding from someone.
- What part of speech is give someone a break?
- Give someone a break is a verb.
- What is the past tense of give someone a break?
- The past tense of give someone a break is gave someone a break.
Words near give someone a break in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: give someone a break (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-au-give someone a break.ogg.
Cite this entry: “give someone a break.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/give_someone_a_break. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.
