broke even
Covered costs exactly
Broke even is the past tense of break even, meaning to finish with neither profit nor loss—expenses exactly matched by income.
We didn't make money, but at least we broke even.
The phrase extends beyond finance to any situation where gains and losses balance out: I won some and lost some, so I broke even overall.
- neutralizedMade ineffective or harmless
- costRequired payment amount
- balancedIn a state of equilibrium
- incomeRegular monetary receipts
- profitGain exceeding expenditure
zero-sum game · wash out · equilibrium · breakeven point · level · cash · money · cash flow · parity · stalemate · gamble · nothing ventured · margin · net zero · loss · bottom line · gain · trade-off
broke evenprofited
Gained financial advantage
made a killing · went bankrupt · cleaned up · hit the jackpot · in the red
broke eventriumphed
Achieved decisive victory
bombed · thrived · crashed and burned · flourished · tanked
broke, even, break, breaks, breaking, broken, breaker, breakers, breakage