break the mold

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English

Alternative forms

Etymology

From the use of molds to make multiple replicas of solid objects using moldable materials.

Pronunciation

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Verb

break the mold (third-person singular simple present breaks the mold, present participle breaking the mold, simple past broke the mold, past participle broken the mold)

  1. (figurative) To depart from a traditional pattern; to defy convention.
    • 1953, A. B. Guthrie Jr., Jack Sher, Shane, spoken by Shane (Alan Ladd):
      A man has to be what he is, Joey. Can't break the mould. I tried it and it didn't work for me.
    • 1997, Theodore R. Sizer, Horace's School: Redesigning the American High School, page 12:
      President Bush joined in; his 1991 education message called for new kinds of schools, ones that "broke the mold".
    • 2021 November 26, Oscar Lopez, “‘Today’s Outfit Is Confidence’: Atypical TikTok Star Enchants Mexico”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:
      Middle-aged and scarred, a Mexican journalist is breaking the mold of social media influencers with a message of pure positivity that resonates in dark times.
  2. To make it impossible for an identical copy to be made.
    • 2001, Adam Troy Castro, Spider-Man: Revenge of the Sinister Six:
      When they made him, they broke the mold. lt was a cliche that had been spoken about any number of men, for any number of different reasons.

Translations