| break open | |
verb | |
| 1. | open with force; "He broke open the picnic basket" |
| 2. | come open suddenly and violently, as if from internal pressure; "The bubble burst" [syn: burst] |
| 3. | erupt or intensify suddenly; "Unrest erupted in the country"; "Tempers flared at the meeting"; "The crowd irrupted into a burst of patriotism" [syn: erupt] |