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The phrase "broke bad" is correct and usable in written English
It is typically used to describe someone who has turned to a life of crime or immoral behavior, often after having been previously law-abiding.
Example: "After losing his job, he broke bad and started dealing drugs to make ends meet."
Alternatives: "went rogue" or "turned to crime."
Dictionary
broke bad
verb
Simple past tense of break bad
Exact(15)
"Jim was down at the bar the other weekend, and he got really drunk and he really broke bad.
If St. Francis of Assisi had held up a liquor store, for example, we would, if I'm not mistaken, say, "Man, the dude really broke bad when he hit that joint").
SÃO PAULO, Brazil — It was the television commercial the Brazilian government wanted banned for portraying women as sex objects: Gisele Bündchen, in matching bra and panties, urging women to wear something similar when they broke bad news to their men.
The great Heisenberg, the dying father who wanted to leave his family enough to live on after his death, the chemistry-whiz turned drug kingpin, the high-school teacher who broke bad and then maybe broke good again, just a little.
(The show's title is slang for what happens when someone's actions take surprisingly uncharacteristic, often law-breaking turns. If St. Francis of Assisi had held up a liquor store, for example, we would, if I'm not mistaken, say, "Man, the dude really broke bad when he hit that joint").
American International Group broke bad news in its earnings report and it says there is more pain to come.
Similar(45)
Between standing and delivering and breaking bad?
Breaking even is better than breaking bad.
Research to support guidelines for breaking bad news is lacking.
I decide to break bad habits.
He's almost breaking bad himself.
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Justyna Jupowicz-Kozak
CEO of Professional Science Editing for Scientists @ prosciediting.com