Idiom: break the ice

Meaning

Idiom: break the ice

To do or say something to make people more relaxed in a social situation and get people talking to each other (e.g., party, business meeting, conference, first day of class).

NOTE: Breaking the ice helps people feel more comfortable and less tense in a new situation or event where people are meeting for the first time. Often activities are created to help people start having conversations with each other and these are called "ice breakers." It's common to have ice breakers at business conferences or parties.

Example sentences

— At the conference will have several activities to help people break the ice.

— It’s always easiest to break the ice with a few drinks.

— Everybody at the meeting already knows each other so let's not have one of those corny exercises to break the ice.

— Unfortunately, his sexist jokes did nothing to break the ice among the meeting attendees.

— What activity are you planning to help break the ice at the conference?

— Sharon, can you organize an ice breaker for the kick-off event at the conference? And please, do something other than "Two Truths and a Lie."

— To break the ice, we passed around a box of matches. Each person lit a match and and had to say something quickly about themselves before it burnt out.

— Our professor brought in a box with three snakes on the first day of class. What a way to break the ice. Everyone had something to say.

— The servers carried around trays of chocolate-covered insects at the welcome reception. What a way to break the ice and get everyone talking to each other.

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Idiom: break the ice

Meaning

Example sentences

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