▪ I. broke, n.
(brəʊk)
Forms: 1–2, 4 broc, 6–8 brok, 8–9 (dial.) brock, 5– broke.
[OE. broc ‘misery’, and ᵹebroc ‘fragment’, f. brecan (pa. pple. ᵹe-brocen) to break. The later lengthening of the vowel may be from the inflected dissyllabic forms broces, brocu, etc.: cf. the pple. broke, brōken, formerly brŏcen. Brock remains dialectally.]
† 1. That which breaks; affliction, trouble, misery. Only in OE.
| c 888 K. ælfred Boeth. xxxix. §10 God nyle for his mildheortnesse nan unaberendlice broc him ansettan. 971 Blickl. Hom. 59 Ealle þa sar and þa brocu þe se man to ᵹesceapen is. 1061 in Thorpe Diplom. 389 Gefreod æghwylcere uneaþnesse ealles woroldlices broces. |
† 2. A piece of anything broken off; a fragment; e.g. of bread or food, broken meats, remains. Obs.
| c 1160 Hatton Gosp. Matt. xv. 37 Þæt to lafe wæs of þam broccan [c 975 Rushw. G. ᵹebroca; c 1000 Ags. G. ᵹebrote], hys naman seofan wilian fulle. 1507 Will of Bedyll (Somerset Ho.) A parcell of a broke of woode. a 1568 Wowing of Jok & Jenny x, Bannatyne Poems 160 Quhen ye haif done, tak hame the brok. 1721 Kelly Sc. Prov. 211 (Jam.) I neither got stock nor brock. 1847–78 Halliwell, Brock, a piece or fragment. West. 1863 Barnes Poems Dorset Dial. Coll. iii. 101 Wi' brocks an' scraps to plim well out. |
† 3. A breaking of the skin or body; a wound; a rupture. Obs.
| c 1350 Med. MS. in Archæol. XXX. 381 Hennebane rote Of ye broc is mych bote. 1535 Coverdale Lev. xxiv. 20 Broke for broke, eye for eye, tothe for tothe. a 1563 Becon New Catech. (1844) 94. |
† 4. A breach of the law; a crime. Obs.
| 1481 Reynard (1844) 92 Hadde I knowen my self gylty in ony feat or broke. |
5. pl. The short-stapled wool found in certain parts of the fleece, when ‘broken’ or sorted. A fleece consists of two main kinds of wool distinguished by the length and strength of the fibre; the sorts which are long and suitable for combing being called ‘matchings’ or ‘combing-sorts’, the rest ‘short wools’ or ‘brokes’. The spinning of the two sorts is by different processes. See noils.
| 1879 Standard 22 Apr., Wool and Worsted.—Bradford..Noils and brokes are slow of sale. 1883 Daily News 3 Sept. 2/6 Noils and brokes are in rather better request. 1885 F. H. Bowman Struct. Wool 352 Gloss., Brokes, short locks of wool found on the edge of the fleece in the region of the neck and belly. |
▪ II. broke, ppl. a.
(brəʊk)
Obsolescent form of broken.
1. Used occasionally for broken ppl. a.
| c 1380 Wyclif Serm. Sel. Wks. II. 14 Leepfullis of broke meat. 1463 Bury Wills (1850) 41 To recompense broke silvir I had of his. 1647 H. More Song of Soul iv. v, Bodies disjoind, broke glasses they esteem. |
2. esp. in comb.
| c 1230 Hali Meid. 25 Witlese beastes dumbe and broke rugget ibuhe toward te eorðe. 1362 Langl. P. Pl. A. vii. 131 Blinde or broke-schonket [B. vi. 138 broke-legged]. 1440 Promp. Parv. 53 Broke bakkyde, gibbosus. 1470 Harding Chron. clvii. iii, Brokebacked and bowbacked bore. 1627 May Lucan v. (R.) Broke-winded murmers, howlings, and sadd grones. |
3. slang. a. In predicative use = broken ppl. a. 7; penniless; also broke to the wide (see wide n.) or broke to the world. Freq. with qualifying word, as clean broke, dead broke, flat broke, stone-broke (see stone n. 20), stony broke (see stony a. 6).
Cf. the following, which are properly instances of break v. 11.
| [1665 Pepys Diary 6 July (1895) V. 6 It seems some of his creditors have taken notice of it, and he was like to be broke yesterday in his absence. 1669 Ibid. 12 Mar. (1896) VIII. 258 Being newly broke by running in debt.] |
| 1716 J. Steuart Let. 28 Dec. (1915) 38 Alexr. Mackpherson..is much in arear and quit broke. 1821 in N. Carolina Hist. Comm. I. 220 I have been broke now twelve months,..yet I move on in the old way. 1842 Spirit of Times 2 Apr. 58/1 Barrett, poor fellow, is dead broke. Ibid. 21 May 138/1 Every friend of Old Whitenose would have been flat broke! 1843 Ibid. 14 Jan. 544/3, I was clean broke in less than four hours. 1846 Ibid. 25 Apr. 101/2, I unfortunately am short of funds, flat broke, busted, collapsed. 1851 N. Kingsley Diary (1914) 173 To day men have come along ‘dead broke’ and have gone to work for 4 dollars pr. day. 1886 H. Smart Outsider vii, Well, sir, I was broke—so broke as I hope I never shall be again—‘dead stoney’, barely expresses it. a 1889 in Barrère & Leland Dict. Slang. s.v., Then came the fiasco, And Ben cried ‘Carrasco! I'm bested, broke, busted—or partly!’ 1889 Pall Mall Gaz. 14 Aug. (Farmer), I see that Sullivan made 21,000 dols. out of his fight, but as he was ‘dead broke’ before the battle, there won't be much of it left. 1898 ‘O. Thanet’ Heart of Toil 141 Think of them boys, who are all stone-broke.., wanting to lend me money. 1918 W. J. Locke Rough Road iii, I believe you good people think I've come back broke to the world. 1926 J. Black You can't Win v. 53 [The landlady] wanted the rent. I told her I was broke. |
b. go for broke: see go v. 58 h.
4. Of animals: broken to harness; = broken ppl. a. 8. Chiefly U.S.
| 1800 Sporting Mag. XVI. 117/2 The grand manege consists in teaching a horse, already perfectly broke in the common way, certain artificial motions. 1833 M. A. Holley Texas v. 97 This brutal process is repeated until the animal is thoroughly broke and rendered docile. 1850 W. Miles Jrnl. (1916) 12, 500 broke mules were to be in readiness. 1856 Trans. Mich. Agric. Soc. VII. 275 Oxen exhibited as working cattle, for their being the best broke, must be hitched to either a wagon or cart. 1893 T. Roosevelt Wilderness Hunter xx. 426 The light-hearted belief..that any animal which by main force has been saddled and ridden..is a ‘broke horse’. |
5. = broken ppl. a. 1 e. Also ellipt.
| 1888 Cross & Bevan Paper-making vi. 104 ‘Broke’ Paper.—Under this head may be included all the partially formed paper which is always obtained..when a paper-machine is started, or such portions as are occasionally unavoidably damaged in its passage over the drying cylinders. Ibid. 105 ‘Broke’ paper may be advantageously disintegrated by means of an edge-runner. 1954 Southward Mod. Printing (ed. 7) II. xlii. 449 Broke. The third grade of imperfect paper. |
▸ colloq. (orig. U.S.). if it ain't broke, don't (also why) fix it: if something is successful, effective, or not obviously defective, there is no need to change or replace it.
| 1977 Nation's Business May 27/3 Bert Lance believes he can save Uncle Sam billions if he can get the government to adopt a simple motto: ‘If it ain't broke, don't fix it.’ 1991 Q. Rev. Wines Autumn 46/3 Can we expect..any outré menu departures—such as bluefish tacos? Or is it simply a question of ‘if it ain't broke, don't fix it’? 2000 M. Brindle & L. A. Mainiero Managing Power through Lateral Networking iv. 54 The senior partners..were more comfortable with the old system. ‘If it's not broke, why fix it?’ was the attitude. |
▪ III. broke, v.
(brəʊk)
[In form the base of broker, brokage, broking. An AFr. vb. abroker occurs in Liber Albus (a 1419) 288.]
† 1. intr. To bargain; to negotiate; to traffic.
| 1496 Dives & Paup. (W. de W.) vii. xxi. 308 [They] thus bargeyne & broke about the syngynge of the masse, that may not be solde ne bought, as men do in byenge & sellynge of an horse. 1601 Shakes. All's Well iii. v. 74 He..brokes with all that can in such a suite Corrupt the tender honour of a Maide. 1611 Cotgr., Brouillon, one that broakes in euery thing, whereby he may get but a pennie. 1625 Bacon Riches, Ess. (Arb.) 237 The gaines of Bargaines, are of a more doubtfull Nature; When Men shall..broake by Seruants and Instruments to draw them on. |
† 2. trans. To retail, traffic in. Obs.
| 1599 Marston Sco. Villanie iii. xi. 227 But to retaile and broke anothers wit. |
3. intr. To act as broker, agent, or go-between.
| a 1652 Brome City Wit ii. ii. Wks. 1873 I. 303 Prithee what art thou? or whom dost thou serve, or broke for? a 1666 Fanshawe (Webster) We do want a certain necessary woman to broke between, Cupid said. 1926 G. K. Chesterton Outl. Sanity v. ii. 203 If men were not brokers, it was because they were not able to broke. 1965 ‘W. Haggard’ Hard Sell v. 54 I'm a stockbroker... I broked for Franchin. |
▪ IV. broke
obs. form of brook n., v.