A. To engage in a comfortable, friendly interaction. Originally, the term was literal, meaning that a loaf of bread would be broken to share and eat; a casual meal among associates.
B. The term later came to be more figurative, but referred to the same situation: a shared meal. Used as a
colloquialism to describe any meal that did or did not involve bread.
C.Today, the term is used to describe a
social interaction where something is shared. This could be food, money, commodities, assets, or other various items.
To break bread is to affirm trust, confidence, and comfort with an individual or group of people.
Breaking bread has a notation of friendliness and informality, derived from the original meaning regarding sharing the loaf.