brokenbroken /ˈbroʊkən/ adjective 1 
damaged or in pieces► broken
damaged or in pieces► broken damaged or in pieces because of being hit, dropped, etc.: After the car accident, there was broken glass everywhere. Some of the chairs were broken and couldn't be used. Her broken arm was in a sling.
► cracked something cracked is damaged and has a thin line on its surface, where it could later break completely: Throw that bowl away. It is cracked. The car was dirty and had a cracked windshield.
► chipped a cup, plate, etc. that is chipped has a small piece broken off the edge of it: She gave me a cup of coffee in a chipped mug.
► fractured (formal) a fractured bone is cracked or broken: The X-ray showed that she had several fractured ribs.
► torn torn paper, clothes, etc. have been damaged and have holes in them: His jeans were torn at the knees.
➔ see in bad condition2 not working► broken not working correctly or not working at all: The DVD player is broken, so we can't watch a movie.
► out of order if a machine in a public place is out of order, it is not working: One of the ticket machines was out of order.
► faulty not working correctly or not made correctly: The fire started because of faulty electrical wires.
► down if a computer system is down, it is not working: The computer system was down all afternoon, so we didn't get any work done.