Emotions
Synonyms for broken
Synonyms for broken: busted and low. Every one of them is a hand audited pair from the Synonym Stack word bank, shown below in the sense it fits, in a real sentence, and beside the words that only look close.
The 2 synonyms for broken
- bustedadjective, in the sense "out of working order ('busted' is an informal substitute for 'broken')"
- lowadjective, in the sense "subdued or brought low in condition or status"
Each of these belongs to a different sense of broken, which is why the meaning beside them changes down the list.
out of working order ('busted' is an informal substitute for 'broken')
The coke machine is broken.
broken in 2 more sentences, same sense
- The printer in the office has been broken for a week, so everyone prints from home now.
- She left a note on the fridge saying the ice maker was broken and to use the cooler instead.
How it behaves: In this sense, broken usually appears as a predicate adjective after a linking verb like is or was, describing a machine, appliance, or device.
The true synonym
busted
Same sentence, swapped: The coke machine is busted.
Close but different
Wrong tiles, chosen to be tempting rather than absurd. The reason line above takes the nearest one apart; the rest fail the same sentence for their own reasons.
- upset
- low
- finished
Opposites, in this sense
working and functional reverse broken as it is used in the sentence above. A different sense of broken takes different opposites, which is why these sit inside the sense and not at the top of the page.
- working
- functional
subdued or brought low in condition or status
A broken man.
broken in 2 more sentences, same sense
- After the third layoff announcement, he sat at his desk looking broken, unable to meet anyone's eyes.
- The letter described a broken man who had lost his business, his home, and his sense of purpose.
How it behaves: In this sense broken usually functions as a predicate adjective after verbs like feel, look, or seem, or premodifies a noun such as man or woman, and carries a literary or emotionally weighted register.
The true synonym
low
Same sentence, swapped: A low man.
Close but different
The game shows these three beside the answer. Each is a real word with a real meaning and none of them fits the slot broken is in above, which is the point the reason line makes.
- upset
- busted
- finished
Opposites, in this sense
whole, unbroken and resilient reverse broken as it is used in the sentence above. A different sense of broken takes different opposites, which is why these sit inside the sense and not at the top of the page.
- whole
- unbroken
- resilient
Where broken turns up in the game
broken is the word under test in two puzzles, spread across Tier 1, Foothills. It also sits on the board as one of the three wrong tiles in three other puzzles, where the answer is a different word entirely.
The puzzles where broken is the trap
- lowadjective, Tier 1, Foothills. The answer there is miserable, in the sense "of the most contemptible kind", so broken is there to be ruled out.
- confusedadjective, Tier 2, Treeline. The answer there is scattered, in the sense "lacking orderly continuity", and broken is on the board beside it.
- lowadjective, Tier 3, Ridgeline. The answer there is depleted, in the sense "no longer sufficient", so broken is there to be ruled out.
Play broken
The bank on this page is the bank the game plays from, so broken reaches you as a board rather than a definition: the sentence first, four tiles, and the meaning after you choose.
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Neighbours by theme before neighbours by difficulty, because emotions is the company broken keeps.
The wrong tile gets explained too
Synonym Stack plays from this exact bank. broken carries 2 written reason lines, and the game shows them the moment a round ends, whichever tile you tapped.