break one's promise
Go back on
To break one's promise is to fail to do what you said you would do.
The phrase emphasizes the violation of trust—a promise is treated as something whole that gets damaged or destroyed: He broke his promise to quit drinking.
The construction requires a possessive: break my promise, break your promise, break their promise.
- defaultingFailing to repay debt
- go back onWithdraw from commitment
- untrustworthinessBeing unreliable or deceitful
- disappointmentSadness from unmet expectations
- dishonestyDisposition toward falsehood
let someone down · empty words · breach of contract · bad faith · cross my heart · estrangement · fall out · betrayal · duplicity · hypocrisy · renege · irresponsibility · faithlessness · deceitfulness · reconciliation · regret · eat one's words · mistrust