LESSON NOTES · レッスンノート

N4Lesson notes · Nov 6, 2026

Break in Japanese: 壊こわれる (kowareru), 割われる, 折おれる, 破やぶれる, 切きれる — which one?

Japanese has no single word that matches every use of "break": you pick the verb from what the object is and how it fails, as a rough guide 壊こわれる for devices, 割われる for glass, 折おれる for long thin things, 破やぶれる for paper and cloth, and 切きれる for cords and connections.

Learners tend to default to 壊こわれる for everything, and it often sounds off. Asking "what kind of thing is this, and which part failed?" makes the choice much easier.

The basics

Which Japanese verb means "break"?

The table is a rule of thumb, not a law. Each verb comes with a matching transitive verb (the one with a person doing it).

Object Intransitive (it breaks) Transitive (someone breaks it) Picture
Phone, PC, TV, chair 壊こわれる (こわれる) 壊こわす (こわす) Function or structure is damaged
Glass, plate, egg, phone screen 割われる (われる) 割わる (わる) Cracks open or breaks into pieces
Pencil, branch, bone 折おれる (おれる) 折おる (おる) A long thin thing snaps
Paper, clothes, bag 破やぶれる (やぶれる) 破やぶる (やぶる) A thin flat thing tears
String, rope, cable 切きれる (きれる) 切きる (きる) A line is cut or ends

When do you use 壊こわれる?

Use 壊こわれる for things with a function or a structure: machines, devices, furniture. It means they no longer work properly or have lost their shape, and it does not have to mean a total stop.

スマホが壊こわれた。 — My phone broke. (casual, it no longer works properly) このいすは壊こわれています。 — This chair is broken. (polite, a sign or a quick warning) 兄あにがパソコンを壊こわした。 — My brother broke the computer. (casual, transitive)

There is also a body use: お腹おなかを壊こわした means "I got an upset stomach", a fixed expression.

When do you use 割われる?

Use 割われる for hard, brittle things that split open or break into pieces: glass, plates, cups, eggs, ice.

コップが割われた。 — The glass broke. (casual, it cracked open or broke apart) 卵たまごを割さってください。 — Please crack the egg. (polite, a recipe line, transitive)

A phone shows the contrast well, because two different parts fail:

スマホの画面がめんが割われた。 — The phone screen cracked. (casual, the glass of the screen) スマホが壊こわれた。 — The phone broke. (casual, the device no longer works properly)

The screen is glass, so it 割われる. The phone as a device 壊こわれる. Both can happen at once, and you choose the verb for each noun.

What about a hairline crack? ひびが入はいる (a crack appears) is the right phrase when the object is still in one piece; 割われる is for when it has split or come apart. The two overlap for screens, where 画面がめんが割われた is the everyday way to describe a cracked screen.

湯ゆのみにひびが入はいった。 — The teacup got a crack. (casual, still in one piece) 湯ゆのみが割われた。 — The teacup broke. (casual, split or in pieces)

When do you use 折おれる?

Use 折おれる for long, thin things that snap: pencils, sticks, branches, chopsticks, bones. A thing that merely bends is 曲まがる, and 折おれ曲まがる covers "folded and bent".

鉛筆えんぴつが折おれた。 — The pencil broke. (casual, it snapped) 木きの枝えだが折おれている。 — The branch is broken. (neutral, describing a state) スキーで足あしの骨ほねを折おった。 — I broke my leg skiing. (casual, literally "I broke the bone of my leg")

For a fracture you normally say 骨ほねが折おれる or 骨ほねを折おる, or the more medical 骨折こっせつする. Not 壊こわれる.

When do you use 破やぶれる?

Use 破やぶれる for thin, flat things that tear: paper, clothes, bags, plastic sheets.

紙かみが破やぶれた。 — The paper tore. (casual) ズボンが破やぶれちゃった。 — My pants ripped. (casual, with a "whoops" feeling) 袋ふくろを破やぶって開あけた。 — I tore the bag open. (casual, transitive)

When do you use 切きれる?

切きれる has several separate uses. The basic one is a line or cord being cut or snapping: ひも, ロープ, ケーブル. The others are a connection ending, something running out, and a blade being sharp.

ひもが切きれた。 — The string snapped. (casual) 電話でんわが切きれた。 — The call got cut off. (casual, the connection ended) 電池でんちが切きれた。 — The battery ran out. (casual, the power is used up) この包丁ほうちょうはよく切きれる。 — This kitchen knife cuts well. (casual, sharpness)

Beyond the basics

Does the same object always take the same verb?

No. The verb follows the part that failed. A bag is a good example:

袋ふくろが破やぶれた。 — The bag tore. (casual, the material ripped) 袋ふくろの持もち手てが切きれた。 — The handle of the bag snapped. (casual, a strap-like part came apart)

A chair works the same way:

いすが壊こわれた。 — The chair broke. (casual, the chair as a whole is no longer usable) いすの脚あしが折おれた。 — The leg of the chair snapped. (casual, one long thin part)

When you name the part, you usually pick the verb for that part. When you name only the object, 壊こわれる is the safe choice for devices and furniture.

What is the difference between 割われた and 割さった?

Each verb has a matching pair. The intransitive (割われる) describes a change that happened to the thing, with the thing as the subject. The transitive (割わる) describes a change that someone caused, so a person is the one acting.

コップが割われた。 — The glass broke. (casual, a change that happened to the glass) 弟おとうとがコップを割さった。 — My little brother broke the glass. (casual, the brother caused it) コップを割さっちゃった。ごめん。 — I broke the glass. Sorry. (casual, the speaker is the one who did it)

The subject can be dropped when the context is clear, so コップを割さった alone does not name a person. Depending on the situation, speakers also use the intransitive for something they did themselves, as in 落おとしたら、コップが割われた ("when I dropped it, the glass broke"). The choice can affect how blame sounds, but it depends on context, so do not treat it as a rule. Our 決きめる and 決きまる article shows a similar pair.

Not every meaning of a verb has a partner. ひもが切きれる pairs with ひもを切きる, but 電池でんちが切きれる does not pair with a 電池でんちを切きる of the same meaning; 切きる in 電源でんげんを切きる means "switch off".

How does "break" work in figurative expressions?

Several of these verbs have fixed figurative meanings. Treat them as set phrases.

約束やくそくを破やぶる — to break a promise ルールを破やぶる — to break a rule 記録きろくを破やぶった。 — (He) broke the record. (the subject comes from context)

If you want a memory aid, picture a promise or a rule as something that holds and then gets torn. That is only a way to remember it, not an explanation of where the words came from. For the full picture, see our article on promise in Japanese.

What does 心こころが折おれる mean?

心こころが折おれる means that someone loses the will to keep going. As a memory aid, think of the heart as a stick that snaps.

試験しけんに何度なんども落おちて、心こころが折おれた。 — I failed the exam so many times that I lost heart. (casual) 心こころが折おれそうだ。 — I feel like I'm about to give up. (casual)

骨ほねが折おれる has a literal use (a bone breaks), and it is also an idiom for "takes a lot of effort":

この仕事しごとは骨ほねが折おれる。 — This job takes a lot of effort. (neutral, an idiom, not about real bones)

What does キレる mean?

キレる is slangy and is written in katakana. It means a person loses their temper suddenly. Its link to 切きれる is a good memory aid: something inside "snaps".

あいつ、すぐキレるんだよ。 — He loses his temper easily. (casual, slangy, a habit) ついにキレた。 — (He) finally snapped. (casual, the subject comes from context)

Use it with friends or in stories, not in polite speech.

How does it sound in casual speech?

ちゃった is a casual contraction of てしまった. It marks that something is done, often with a "whoops" feeling, and it works with all the verbs above.

また壊こわれちゃった。 — It broke again. (casual, a sigh) お皿さら、割われちゃった。 — The plate broke. (casual, said to someone at home) 全部ぜんぶぶっ壊こわしてやる。 — I'll smash it all. (rough, a dramatic line)

ぶっ壊こわす is a rough, emphatic form of 壊こわす. Keep it for fiction or very casual speech.

A short practice conversation

Here is a made-up exchange to show the verbs in a row:

A: どうしたの? — What happened? (casual) B: スマホ、落おとしちゃって。画面がめんが割われたんだ。 — I dropped my phone. The screen cracked. (casual) A: 動うごく? — Does it work? (casual) B: うん、壊こわれてはいないよ。 — Yeah, it isn't broken. (casual)

What does Japanese not use for "break"?

Some English senses of "break" do not use any of these verbs.

  • A break, meaning a rest: 休憩きゅうけい (きゅうけい). Take a break is 休憩きゅうけいする or 休憩きゅうけいを取とる. For how 休憩きゅうけい differs from 休暇きゅうか (vacation), see 休憩きゅうけい vs 休暇きゅうか.
  • To break up with someone: 別わかれる (わかれる). 彼女かのじょと別わかれた means "I broke up with my girlfriend".

壊こわす can take a relationship as its object, but then it means damaging it, not ending it: 二人ふたりの関係かんけいを壊こわした means "I damaged the relationship between us", and it does not by itself say that you split up.

ちょっと休憩きゅうけいしよう。 — Let's take a short break. (casual, suggesting a rest) 去年きょねん、彼女かのじょと別わかれた。 — I broke up with my girlfriend last year. (casual)

Common mistakes

  • 紙かみが壊こわれた. Paper tears. For the usual meaning, say 紙かみが破やぶれた.
  • ガラスが壊こわれた. For the glass itself, the normal choice is ガラスが割われた.
  • 約束やくそくを壊こわす. The usual phrase is 約束やくそくを破やぶる. Rules and records go with 破やぶる too.
  • 足あしが壊こわれた for a broken leg. Say 足あしの骨ほねが折おれた, or 足あしを骨折こっせつした.
  • 私わたしはコップが割われた for something you dropped. This sentence does not connect 私わたし and the verb well. Say 私わたしはコップを割さった, or just コップが割われた.

These are the unnatural choices for the ordinary meanings. Special or figurative contexts can change the picture.

Practice

Choose the verb first, then check the answer. Questions 6 and 7 are a pair on intransitive and transitive.

1. Say "My TV stopped working." Which verb?

Show answer

テレビが壊こわれた — a TV is a device, so 壊こわれる.

2. A teacup fell and broke into pieces. Which verb?

Show answer

湯ゆのみが割われた — a hard brittle thing that broke apart takes 割われる. If it only got a crack and stayed whole, you would say ひびが入はいった.

3. Your shoelace snapped while you were walking. Which verb?

Show answer

靴くつひもが切きれた — a shoelace is a cord, so 切きれる.

4. Say "I tore the letter." Which verb?

Show answer

手紙てがみを破やぶった — a letter is thin and flat, so 破やぶる, and you did it, so the transitive form.

5. Say "The ruler snapped." Which verb?

Show answer

定規じょうぎが折おれた — a long thin object that snaps takes 折おれる.

6. You dropped a mirror and it broke. Describe only what happened to the mirror.

Show answer

鏡かがみが割われた — the intransitive describes the change that happened to the mirror. This is the pair to question 7.

7. Now say "I broke the mirror."

Show answer

鏡かがみを割さっちゃった — the transitive 割わる shows that you caused the change, and ちゃった adds a "whoops" feeling.

8. How do you say "We broke the rule"?

Show answer

ルールを破やぶった — a set phrase with 破やぶる.

9. Your friend says 「バッテリーが切きれた」. Is the battery physically damaged?

Show answer

No — 切きれる here means the power ran out. The battery is just empty.

10. "I want to break up with him." Which verb?

Show answer

別わかれたい — ending a relationship is 別わかれる, so 彼かれと別わかれたい. 関係かんけいを壊こわす would mean damaging the relationship, which is a different message.

FAQ

How do I say something is currently broken? Use the te-form plus いる: 壊こわれている, 割われている, 折おれている. The state is what you see now, as in 窓まどが割われている, "the window is broken".

Can 壊こわれる be used for things that are not machines? Yes, for buildings, toys and similar things with a structure: 家いえが壊こわれた. It means the structure was damaged.

What if I do not know how something broke? 壊こわれた is the safe general word for objects with a function or structure. For a machine that does not work, 故障こしょう (こしょう) is the more technical word.

Is 折おる only for breaking things? No. 折おる also means "to fold", so 折り紙おりがみを折おる is "to fold origami".

Vocabulary from this article

Tap the block to select all of it, then copy. In Anki: File → Import, note type Basic, separator Tab.

壊れる	こわれる — to break, to get damaged
壊す	こわす — to break (something)
割れる	われる — to break apart, to crack open
割る	わる — to crack, to break (something)
ひびが入る	ひびがはいる — a crack appears
折れる	おれる — to snap
折る	おる — to snap, to fold
曲がる	まがる — to bend
破れる	やぶれる — to tear
破る	やぶる — to tear, to break (a promise)
切れる	きれる — to be cut, to run out
切る	きる — to cut
約束	やくそく — promise
記録	きろく — record
骨	ほね — bone
袋	ふくろ — bag
持ち手	もちて — handle
脚	あし — leg (of furniture)
休憩	きゅうけい — a break, a rest
別れる	わかれる — to part, to break up
ひも	ひも — string, cord

I'm Yuuki, a Japanese teacher based in Tokyo. I've taught on italki as a Top 1% teacher and watched over 1,500 anime, so most of the example sentences on this blog come from lines I've actually heard learners ask about. For practice with feedback, Book a trial lesson · $13, or work through Japanese practice exercises first.

Sources: the author's own lessons and standard reference grammars.

More drills like the ones above, plus a timed JLPT-style mock test: Practice · N4 · Read something at this level: JLPT N4 stories with audio

Want to try this in a real conversation?

30-minute trial lesson, $13. Times shown in your own timezone.

Practice it out loud with a Tokyo native. ★5.0 from 358 italki reviews.

See how the lessons work →

Book a trial lesson · $13