break down
breɪk daʊn
A car, a negotiation and a person all collapse the same way
The picture Something holding itself upright cracks apart and sinks down to the ground. Build up stacks something up until it stands; break down cracks it and lets it sink.
Where the picture shows up in break down
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the car cracks and sits down
My car broke down on the highway.
maɪ kɑːr broʊk daʊn ɑːn ðə ˈhaɪweɪ
My car died on the motorway.
The running car halts on the hard shoulder with steam rising from the bonnet.
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the machine sits down
The washing machine has broken down again.
ðə ˈwɑːʃɪŋ məˈʃiːn hæz ˈbroʊkən daʊn əˈɡen
The washing machine has failed again.
The spinning drum clunks, stops, and the machine just sits there dead.
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the negotiation caves in
The talks broke down last night.
ðə tɔːks broʊk daʊn læst naɪt
The talks collapsed last night.
The agreement the two sides were stacking up caves in from the middle.
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the person caves in
She broke down when she heard the news.
ʃi broʊk daʊn wen ʃi hɜːrd ðə nuːz
She burst into tears when she heard the news.
A person who was holding herself upright loses her legs and sinks down crying.
The mind that was holding itself upright cracks and sinks.
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a lump cracked into pieces
Can you break down the cost for me?
kən juː breɪk daʊn ðə kɔːst fər miː
Could you itemise the cost for me?
A big lump of cost is cracked apart and laid out piece by piece.
Smashing one lump into small pieces and laying them out is the same picture.
All of it in one picture
Break down is one picture: something upright cracking and coming down. When the thing that comes down is a car it has died; a washing machine, it has failed; a negotiation, it has collapsed. When a person comes down, she bursts into tears; when a lump cracks into pieces, the cost is itemised. So break down always carries the same feeling — what was holding itself up has broken and settled to the ground.