He tried to break gates after the clock struck midnight.
break gates
idiomTo enter an Oxford or Cambridge college enclosure after the hour to which a student has been restricted.
The students risked a heavy fine when they decided to break gates to return to their rooms late at night.
Despite the strict disciplinary consequences awaiting any student caught, he foolishly attempted to break gates rather than face the locked doors of the college.
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big break
A breakthrough, especially the first big hit of a previously unknown performer or performers in the entertainment industry.
- 02
break a leg
Good luck!; Do your best!; Said to someone wishing they perform well in a theatrical production or comparable endeavor.
- 03
break a sweat
To put effort into something.
- 04
break cover
To disclose one's real thoughts and intentions.
- 05
break down
To give in or give up: relent, concede, surrender.
- 06
break even
To neither gain nor lose money.
- 07
break in
To reach a state of functioning more smoothly through use or wear; to cause (something, or someone, new) to undergo this change.
- 08
break into
To enter illegally or by force, especially in order to commit a crime.