Break up or Break down

[nq:1]Hello, In the following business usage, which one is more appropriate and why? "Could you please provide a break up of this estimate?" or "Could you please provide a break down of this estimate?" Whats the difference between the two[/nq]
That should be "what's", and you need a question mark at the end.

"Breakdown" (a noun, hence no space)(1) is the correct answer. "Breakup" (ag

"Could you please provide a breakdown of this estimate?" This looks more appropriate

-- www.englishdaily626.com
[nq:1]

[nq:1]In the following business usage, which one is more appropriateand why? "Could you please provide a break up of this estimate?" or "Could you please provide a break down of this estimate?"[/nq]
Roughly speaking, to "break up" means to destroy by separating-with a suggestion of violence, actual or metaphorical-some thing into smaller parts.

"The ship broke up on

[nq:2]Hello, In the following business usage, which one is more ... down of this estimate?" Whats the difference between the two[/nq]
[nq:1]That should be "what's", and you need a question mark at the end. "Breakdown" (a noun, hence no space)(1) is the correct answer. "Breakup" (again a noun, again no space)[/nq]
I'd hyphenate "break-up", but don't let WP get involved in the discussion.

( ... )
[nq:1]The verb forms are "to break down" and "to break up"; the corresponding nouns are "a breakup" and "a breakdown". (The form "breakup" is not usually encountered,[/nq]
You're not married to a divorce lawyer.

(Mark says to hyphenate it, but I'm not allowed to tell you.)

-- Bob Lieblich I am

[nq:1] ( ... )[/nq]
[nq:2]The verb forms are "to break down" and "to break ... and "a breakdown". (The form "breakup" is not usually encountered,[/nq]
[nq:1]You're not married to a divorce lawyer. (Mark says to hyphenate it, but I'm not allowed to tell you.)[/nq]
(only 'break-up' -- 'breakdown' would look silly with a hyphen -- but thanks for keeping it on the QT, anyway)

(an

[nq:1] ( ... )[/nq]
[nq:2]The verb forms are "to break down" and "to break ... and "a breakdown". (The form "breakup" is not usually encountered,[/nq]
[nq:1]You're not married to a divorce lawyer. (Mark says to hyphenate it, but I'm not allowed to tell you.)[/nq]
You may relay to him that the virtually invariable progress of such terms has, in this case, proceeded well past the point

I guess the breakup of the marriage results from a breakdown in
Not, of course, that either has a preposition...

Trailing, not leading. Sometimes idiom is fixed and sometimes, as here, it's flexible; that is, we could get away with--

I guess the breakup in the marriage results from a breakdown of the marriage.

--but, at least to me, that sounds less natural and idiomatic, at least for those particular uses. In fact, I'm far from sure that it even expresses quite the same thought.