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One is the device that stops a vehicle, the other means to shatter or a rest.
Side-by-side comparison
"Brake" is the device that slows a vehicle, and also the verb to slow down. "Apply the brakes" = press the brake.
She hit the brake hard to avoid the dog.
The mechanic said the brakes needed replacing.
Brake slowly when the road is wet.
"Break" has many uses: to shatter, to pause, a fracture, or a rest period. "Take a break" = rest for a moment. "Break the record" = surpass the record.
Be careful, or you will break that glass.
Let's take a ten-minute break.
She broke the world record by two seconds.
Common mistake
- •"I need a brake" when you mean a rest is the most common mistake.
- •"Brake" is the device that stops a vehicle.
- •For a rest, pause, or shattering something, use "break".
Trick to remember it
- •"Brake" has A for "auto" (car part).
- •"Break" ends in EAK like "weak": weak things break, and when you're exhausted you need a break.
Quick rule
- •"Brake" = the stopping device (vehicle).
- •"Break" = to shatter, to pause, or a lucky opportunity.
Did you know?
"Break" is one of the most versatile words in English, with over 50 registered meanings: break a record, break the news, break a promise, take a break, a lucky break, break of day, breakthrough, jailbreak. Few English words have such a rich semantic life. "Brake" by contrast has essentially one meaning, which makes the spelling confusion even more striking, since the rarer word often wins the typo battle.
Practise what you learned
Exercise 1 · Pick the right one
I've been working for four hours. I really need a _____ .
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
The driver pressed the _____ hard but the car took too long to stop.
Exercise 3 · Form the word
Related word pairs
One means to receive or agree to something, the other means to exclude or not include.
'Advice' is the guidance you receive (noun); 'advise' is the act of giving that guidance (verb).
'Affect' is the verb meaning to influence something; 'effect' is the noun meaning result or consequence.
'Aisle' is the walkway between rows of seats or shelves; 'isle' is a small island.
Bryan López
Founder of SpeakUP Academy