Breakdown
Breakdown noun - A mental or nervous collapse.
Expression and breakdown are semantically related. In some cases you can use "Expression" instead a noun "Breakdown".
Expression
Expression noun - An act, process, or means of putting something into words.
Breakdown and expression are semantically related. Sometimes you can use "Breakdown" instead a noun "Expression".
How words are described
Both words in one sentence
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The hero will usually have the facial expression of a deer in the headlights of an eighteen wheeler, or seem deeply conflicted, confused, or about to have a nervous breakdown.
Source: Circling Monologue -
At this point, you can tell by Ripley's facial expression that she's trying to hold back a nervous breakdown.
Source: Film / Alien -
Battle of Wits Beauty Is Never Tarnished Subverted precisely one time in the entire series, where the otherwise Bishoujo looking Nina learns about Princess Euphemia's death and has a mental breakdown, complete with the facial expression you'd expect in real life.
Source: Anime / Code Geass
Cite this Source
Expression and Breakdown. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 22, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/breakdown/expression
Breakdown & Expression. N.p., 2016. Web. 22 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/breakdown/expression>.
Expression or Breakdown. 2016. Accessed July 22, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/breakdown/expression.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "breakdown" and "expression" have occurred on timeline