Megtörés

Megtörés is a Hungarian noun that denotes breaking, rupture, or a decisive turning point. It is formed from the verb törni (to break) with the prefix meg-, which adds a sense of a definite moment or completion. The word is used across multiple domains, with slightly different nuances.

In a physical or technical sense, megtörés refers to the moment or process of something breaking when a threshold of stress or strain is exceeded. For example, a material may undergo megtörés under load, resulting in fracture or failure. In engineering and materials science, the term can be related to the concept of a meg­törési pont (the breaking or failure point).

In geology, törés is the standard term for a fracture or fault in rocks, but megtörés can appear in more descriptive or historical contexts to indicate a rupture within a rock mass or crust, especially when emphasizing the moment of rupture rather than the ongoing fracture process. Collocations such as megtörésvonal (rupture line) or megtörési pont are used in specialized texts.

Figuratively, megtörés is widely used to describe a turning point or breakthrough in a process, a history, or a field of study. It signals a decisive change that alters the course of events, such as a political, social, or technological breakthrough.

Related terms include törés, repedés, és megtörési pont. In usage, the preferred sense is chosen by context, with the physical sense more common in engineering and the figurative sense in historical or strategic writing.