# break the buck

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/break-the-buck
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

To fall below the value of one dollar per share.

## Examples

- The stock price will break the buck if it falls further.
- Investors panicked when the fund's share price began to break the buck during the market crash.
- Financial analysts warned that if the stablecoin continued to break the buck, it would trigger a massive loss of confidence among institutional traders.

## Origin

From the colloquial *buck*, denoting a dollar, combined with *break* in the sense of exhausting a reserve of funds. The construction mirrors the earlier idiom *break the bank*.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.