verb
housebreak
HOWS-brayk/ˈhaʊsˌbreɪk/
To train an animal to relieve itself in an appropriate place.
The owner housebreaks the puppy with praise and treats for going outside.
Etymology
House and break occur in the earlier criminal sense; the verb may be a back-formation from housebreaking or housebreaker. Its later animal-training sense concerns teaching cleanliness in the home.
In context
dachshunds are infamously difficult to housebreak.
More examples
- We take our dog outside regularly to help housebreak him.
- They housebroke their puppy using indoor training pads.
- Even a housebroken dog may have an occasional accident.
Forms
housebreak · housebreaks · housebroke · housebroken · housebreaking
Similar words
- housetrain
- An equivalent term emphasizing training rather than changing a habit.
- potty-train
- Often describes teaching young children, but also applies to pets.