Meanings
- idiomaticGood luck!; Do your best!; Said to someone wishing they perform well in a theatrical production or comparable endeavor.
Go out there and break a leg tonight. Put on a great show!
1 more example
I told my friend to break a leg, before she went on stage.
Synonyms: toi, toi, toi
Synonyms & antonyms
interjectionGood luck!; Do your best!; Said to someone wishing they perform well in a theatrical production or comparable endeavor.
Origin
- Hebrewהַצְלָחָה וּבְרָכָה“success and blessing”
- Yiddishהצלחה און ברכה“success and blessing”
- Englishbreak a leg
Unknown; many unproven and widely debated theories exist. One of the most plausible is that it comes from Yiddish הצלחה און ברכה (hatslokhe un brokhe, “success and blessing”) through the heavy Ashkenazi Jewish influence in the American theater, via the misinterpretation in German as Hals- und Beinbruch (“neck and leg fracture”). The Yiddish phrase itself comes from Hebrew הַצְלָחָה וּבְרָכָה (hatzlakhá u-v'rakhá, “success and blessing”). Another possible origin was to wish opposite luck on the performer so as not to jinx the statement.
More words from Yiddish, Hebrew
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Catalan molta merda!
- molta merda!expression of best wishes to a performer
Chinese Mandarin 祝你好運 /祝你好运
- 祝你好運 /祝你好运 (zhù nǐ hǎoyùn)expression of best wishes to a performer
Czech zlom vaz!
- zlom vaz!expression of best wishes to a performer
Danish knæk og bræk!, pøj
- knæk og bræk!expression of best wishes to a performer
- pøjexpression of best wishes to a performer
- pøj!expression of best wishes to a performer
Dutch zet hem op, toi toi toi!
- zet hem opexpression of best wishes to a performer
- toi toi toi!expression of best wishes to a performer
Estonian kivi kotti!
- kivi kotti!expression of best wishes to a performer
Finnish tsemppaa!, tsemppiä!
- tsemppaa!expression of best wishes to a performer
- tsemppiä!expression of best wishes to a performer
French je te dis merde !, merde !
- je te dis merde !expression of best wishes to a performer
- merde !expression of best wishes to a performer
- bonne merdeexpression of best wishes to a performer
German Hals- und Beinbruch!, Mast- und Schotbruch!
- Hals- und Beinbruch!expression of best wishes to a performer
- Mast- und Schotbruch!expression of best wishes to a performer
Hebrew הַצְלָחָה וּבְרָכָה!
- הַצְלָחָה וּבְרָכָה! (hatzlakhá u-v'rakhá!)expression of best wishes to a performer
Hungarian kéz- és lábtörést!
- kéz- és lábtörést!expression of best wishes to a performer
Italian in bocca al lupo!, in culo alla balena!
- in bocca al lupo!expression of best wishes to a performer
- in culo alla balena!expression of best wishes to a performer
Polish połamania nóg, powodzenia
- połamania nógexpression of best wishes to a performer
- powodzeniaexpression of best wishes to a performer
Portuguese dê o seu melhor!, muita merda!
- dê o seu melhor!expression of best wishes to a performer
- muita merda!expression of best wishes to a performer
Romanian baftă, să fie cu noroc
- baftăexpression of best wishes to a performer
- să fie cu norocexpression of best wishes to a performer
Russian ни пу́ха ни пера́, ни хвоста ни чешуи
- ни пу́ха ни пера́ (ni púxa ni perá)expression of best wishes to a performer
- ни хвоста ни чешуи (ni xvosta ni češui)expression of best wishes to a performer
Slovak zlom väz
- zlom väzexpression of best wishes to a performer
Spanish ¡mucha mierda!, ¡mucha miola/miércale/porra!
- ¡mucha mierda!expression of best wishes to a performer
- ¡mucha miola/miércale/porra! (bowdlerized)expression of best wishes to a performer
Swedish kör hårt!
- kör hårt!expression of best wishes to a performer
Turkish iyi şanslar!, şeytanın bacağını kırmak
- iyi şanslar!expression of best wishes to a performer
- şeytanın bacağını kırmakexpression of best wishes to a performer
Ukrainian ні пу́ху ні пера́!, ні пір'я ні луски
- ні пу́ху ні пера́! (ni púxu ni perá!)expression of best wishes to a performer
- ні пір'я ні луски (ni pirʺja ni lusky)expression of best wishes to a performer
Yiddish הצלחה און ברכה!
- הצלחה און ברכה! (hatslokhe un brokhe!)expression of best wishes to a performer
Cite this entry
break a leg. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/break%20a%20leg
“break a leg.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/break%20a%20leg. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “break a leg,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/break%20a%20leg.
Source: break a leg on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.