Spanish · Everyday Verbs

"to break" in Spanish: romper

romper

Say it: rohm-PEHR / seh rohm-PYOHverb/rom.ˈpeɾ/

To break in Spanish is romper. Say se rompió and no lo rompas. Use it for phones, glasses, and promises.

Phone

Se me rompió la pantalla ayer.
My screen broke on me yesterday.
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How to pronounce romper

Say it

rohm-PEHR / seh rohm-PYOH

/rom.ˈpeɾ/

rohm-PEHR. Se rompió is seh rohm-PYOH. Stress PYOH.

"to break" in Spanish: quick reference

SpanishEnglish
romperto break

Infinitive.

se rompióit broke

Accidental past.

no lo rompasdon't break it

Informal warning.

rompióhe/she broke

Preterite.

roto / rotabroken

Adjective from romper.

How to use romper in real life

  1. 1Phone

    Se me rompió la pantalla ayer.

    My screen broke on me yesterday.

    Se me rompió is common.

  2. 2Careful

    No rompas el vaso, por favor.

    Don't break the glass, please.

    No rompas warning.

  3. 3News

    El niño rompió el juguete nuevo.

    The child broke the new toy.

    Rompió past tense.

Mistakes English speakers make with romper

Incorrect: Se breakió el plato.

Correct: Se rompió el plato.

Use rompió / romper, not English break.

Incorrect: Yo romper el teléfono.

Correct: Rompió el teléfono. / Se me rompió el teléfono.

Conjugate romper; accidents often use se me rompió.

Good to know

Se me rompió softens blame—it broke on me. Roto/rota describes a broken thing. For bones, people also say me fracturé; romper still appears in casual talk.

Try it in a ChatPal conversation

A cracked phone screen

  1. ChatPal

    ¿Se te rompió la pantalla?

    Did your screen break?

  2. You

    Sí. Se me rompió al caer.

    Yes. It broke on me when it fell.

  3. ChatPal

    No rompas más el vidrio al limpiar.

    Don't break the glass more when cleaning.

  4. You

    Voy a una tienda de reparación.

    I'm going to a repair shop.

This is a sample. In ChatPal you have this conversation out loud and get feedback on what you say.

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"to break" in other languages

FAQ

Common questions about "to break" in Spanish

How do I say it broke?

Se rompió.

It broke on me?

Se me rompió.

Don't break it?

No lo rompas.

How do you pronounce rompió?

rohm-PYOH, stress on PYOH.

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  4. Step 4: Use it in real scenarios

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