Source : WordNet®

break down
     v 1: make a mathematical, chemical, or grammatical analysis of;
          break down into components or essential features;
          "analyze a specimen"; "analyze a sentence"; "analyze a
          chemical compound" [syn: {analyze}, {analyse}, {dissect},
           {take apart}] [ant: {synthesize}]
     2: make ineffective; "Martin Luther King tried to break down
        racial discrimination" [syn: {crush}]
     3: lose control of one's emotions; "When she heard that she had
        not passed the exam, she lost it completely"; "When her
        baby died, she snapped" [syn: {lose it}, {snap}]
     4: stop operating or functioning; "The engine finally went";
        "The car died on the road"; "The bus we travelled in broke
        down on the way to town"; "The coffee maker broke"; "The
        engine failed on the way to town"; "her eyesight went
        after the accident" [syn: {fail}, {go bad}, {give way}, {die},
         {give out}, {conk out}, {go}, {break}]
     5: separate (substances) into constituent elements or parts
        [syn: {decompose}, {break up}]
     6: fall apart; "the building crimbled after the explosion";
        "Negociations broke down" [syn: {crumble}, {crumple}, {tumble},
         {collapse}]
     7: cause to fall or collapse
     8: collapse due to fatigue, an illness, or a sudden attack
        [syn: {collapse}]