BREAKING THE ICE

To break the ice is to do or say something to relieve shyness or tension at a meeting between strangers.

 Ice is physically broken to allow boats to pass through frozen water.

 e.g. “Starting Saturday the Coast Guard will be breaking the ice to keep the channels open for navigation.”


However, the current use of this phrase as an idiom began in the 17th century, with ice being used to represent a cold or unfriendly manner at least since the time of Shakespeare [1].

Examples of use:

“Aidan took the students through a number of exercises to break the ice, then gave them tips on how to remember lines more effectively.”

“Mayonnaise or Salad Cream? A very important question and a great way to break the ice at a buffet.”

“When someone moves into your street, it’s a great time to break the ice: invite them for a cup of tea while their kettle is still packed in a box, take them a small moving in gift or just go over to their house and introduce yourself, says Holmes.”

[1] Cresswell, Julia. "ice." In The Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins. : Oxford University Press,, 2009. 

Photo credit: Ernesto De Quesada