break the ice
/breɪk ðə aɪs/
to help people relax and start talking when they don’t know each other
In the video
New clients arrive, and the boss asks Peter: “Can you break the ice?” He drags in a giant mallet and smashes a block of ice, sending cubes everywhere. She has to explain that she wanted him to help the clients relax and start talking.
What it really means
When people first meet, the room can feel frozen: nobody knows what to say. To break the ice is to end that awkward feeling.
The image probably comes from icebreaker ships, which smash the ice so that other ships can pass. A first friendly comment does the same job: after it, talking is easier.
When to use it
Use it for the start of a meeting, meeting new people, team events or dates. A related word is “icebreaker”, an activity such as a short game before a meeting.
Examples
- Let’s break the ice with a quick game before the meeting.
- He told a funny story to break the ice.
- A simple “Where are you from?” can break the ice.
Common mistake
✗ She told a joke to break the silence ice.
✓ She told a joke to break the ice.
This is a fixed phrase, so don’t add extra words. “Break the silence” is a different phrase, so don’t mix them.
Similar phrases
- warm up the room to make an audience feel relaxed; used for talks and events
- start the conversation to begin talking; the simple way to say it, with no image