housebreaking

/ˈhaʊsbreɪkɪŋ/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈhaʊsbreɪkɪŋ/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈhau̇s-ˌbrā-kiŋ/ (ame, mw)

housebreaking — noun

  • housebreakingsingular
  • housebreakingsplural

1. the criminal act of forcing your way into someone's home, usually with the plan

1.名詞C1
釋義

the criminal act of forcing your way into someone's home, usually with the plan of stealing things once inside.

例句

Rachid was charged with housebreaking after climbing through the kitchen window of a neighbour's flat.

charged with housebreaking — typical legal collocation

Reports of housebreaking in the village rose sharply after the new motorway opened.

reports of housebreaking + rise/fall — common news pattern

同義詞
  • burglary

    the standard term in American English and in most modern British legal use

  • break-in

    more informal; describes the event itself rather than the legal charge

  • breaking and entering

    American legal phrase; broader, covers entering any building, not only a home

用法筆記

Mainly British and Scottish legal usage; American English usually says 'burglary'. Treat as an uncountable noun — say 'a case of housebreaking', not 'a housebreaking'.

常見錯誤

❌Two housebreakings happened last night.
✅Two cases of housebreaking happened last night.
💡housebreaking is uncountable; use 'cases of' or 'incidents of' to count separate events.
❌He did a housebreaking at the school.
✅He committed housebreaking at the school.
💡pair the noun with 'commit', not 'do' or 'make'.