to break your back
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
To make you bank- rupt; to reduce you to a state of impotence. The metaphor is from carrying burdens on the back.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “to break your back” mean?
To make you bank- rupt; to reduce you to a state of impotence. The metaphor is from carrying burdens on the back.
Is “to break your back” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.