break through
BothSense-dependent: some meanings take an object and split, others take none. Check the sense you mean.
How to say it
Stress the particle, not the verb: break THROUGH. Saying “BREAK through” is the clearest learner tell — the verb stays light and the particle carries the beat.
Do not release the /k/. Before the consonant of “through” the stop is held and swallowed rather than popped — the same unreleased-stop move as in hot dog. One smooth unit: “break through”. Watch the TH in “through” — tongue tip between the teeth, voiceless. Swapping it for /t/ or /s/ is the usual slip.
Verb vs noun
As a noun the stress flips to the front: the verb is break THROUGH, the noun is BREAKTHROUGH. Same two words, different beat — “to break THROUGH” is the action, “a breakthrough” is the thing. Getting this backwards makes the sentence land oddly even when every sound is right.
What it means
To force a way past an obstacle or barrier.
- “The sun finally broke through the clouds.”
- “Researchers broke through a problem that had stalled them for years.”
Similar: penetrate