Where does “break” come from?

break (Spanish) comes from French break, from English break, from Middle English breken, from Old English brecan, from Proto-West Germanic brekan, from Proto-Germanic brekaną, from Proto-Indo-European bʰrēǵ- — to shine, shimmer.

break (Spanish): estate car, station wagon

Definitions

  1. estate car, station wagon

Ancestry of “break”, step by step

break traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via French break

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchbreakbreak; estate car, station wagon
2EnglishbreakTo separate into two or more pieces, to fracture...
3Middle Englishbrekento break
4Old Englishbrecanto break; to break into a place
5Proto-West Germanicbrekanto break
6Proto-Germanicbrekanąto break
7Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰrēǵ-to shine, shimmer

via English breakdancing

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishbreakdancingAn urban style of acrobatic street dance that...
2EnglishdancingThe activity of taking part in a dance; A dance...
3EnglishdanceA sequence of rhythmic steps or movements usually...
4Middle EnglishdauncenTo dance, be in a dance; To move about in a rapid...
5Anglo-Normandauncer
Every word from Proto-Indo-European bʰrēǵ-
break — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer