breaking the internet
Massive online sensation
Breaking the internet describes online content—usually an image, video, or announcement—that generates such massive traffic and attention it seems to overwhelm the web itself.
The phrase is hyperbolic; nothing literally breaks.
It gained currency after Kim Kardashian's 2014 magazine cover was promoted with this phrase: That photo shoot broke the internet.
Now used for any viral sensation that dominates social media: The celebrity couple's surprise announcement broke the internet.
- trendingCurrently gaining widespread attention
- going viralSpreading rapidly online
- sensationPerceived stimulus or phenomenon
- phenomenonExtraordinary observable occurrence
- buzzworthyDeserving excited discussion
Kim Kardashian · viral · hype · meme · hashtag · shareability · retweet · influencer · crash · clickbait · hot take · virality · celebrity · algorithm · server crash · load balancing · social media · virality
breaking the internetflopping
Falling loosely, without control
falling flat · bombing · crickets · tanking · dead on arrival
break, breaking, broken, breaks, breaker, breakage, unbreakable, breakable, internet