break-in
"break-in" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“break-in” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 8
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The act of entering a place with the intent to steal or commit some other offense; an instance of breaking and entering.
Corpus desk
Index EN-break-in · break-in · English
break-in · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-LONG 8 letters
- VOW-3 3 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "B" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern
Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | break-in |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| Letters | 8 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “break-in” in English
Rare enough to double-check
break-in is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "The act of entering a place with the intent to steal or commit some other offense; an instance of breaking and entering.".
break-in has no tracked misspelling variants, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: Deverbal from break in. The correct English form is break-in, spelled B-R-E-A-K---I-N.
Definition
- 1The act of entering a place with the intent to steal or commit some other offense; an instance of breaking and entering.
Recorded use
Wiktionary exampleThese source excerpts show how break-in appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
There was a break-in at the shop; everything was taken.
Etymology
Deverbal from break in.
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.