Break out means to start suddenly (a war, a fire, a fight, an epidemic) or to escape. In the first meaning, it describes something unpleasant and unexpected: A fire broke out. In the second, it needs “of”: break out of prison, break out of a routine, that is, escape from prison or from a dull routine.
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a war / a fire / a fight + breaks out; break out of + prison / a routine
- A fire broke out in the hotel kitchen late at night, but nobody was hurt.
- At the end of the meeting, a heated argument broke out over the budget.
- I love my job, but sometimes I want to break out of my routine and travel for a month.
What changed
First versionLast night broke out a fire in our building.
RevisionLast night a fire broke out in our building.
The incorrect sentence starts with the time and then puts the verb before the thing that started: “broke out a fire”. In English, the thing that started comes first and the verb follows it, even after a time phrase: a fire broke out. The corrected sentence uses the same words; only their order has changed.
“Break out” does not work for planned events. A lesson or a concert simply starts: The concert started at eight. Keep “break out” for sudden, unpleasant events: Fighting broke out near the border. The related noun “outbreak” means a sudden start of something bad, most often a disease: an outbreak of flu.
Your turn
A fight ___ between two fans after the match, and the police had to step in.
Show the answer
broke out — The police had to step in, so the fight had started: “broke out”. “Broke up” is used when a fight ends or someone stops it, and then there would be no reason for the police to step in.
Describe a time when something unpleasant suddenly happened on a trip, at work or at home. Say what started and what the people around you did.
Panic broke out on our flight when the plane suddenly dropped, but the crew calmly explained that it was just turbulence.
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