87 Breaking Up Quotes

Navigating the turbulent waters of a breakup can be one of life's most challenging experiences. Whether you're seeking solace, strength, or simply a sense of shared understanding, words have a unique power to heal and inspire. We've curated a collection of the top 87 breaking up quotes, each one offering a different perspective on ending relationships. These quotes are meant to provide comfort, insight, and perhaps a bit of hope as you move through this difficult period. Read on and find the words that resonate with your journey.

1. “I once broke up with a boy because he wrote me an awful poem.” - Karen Joy Fowler

2. “You go to work the next day pretending nothing happened.Your co-workers askif everything's okay and you tell themyou're just tired.And you're trying to smile. And they're trying to smile.” - Richard Siken

3. “You don't make me feel like you used to.That's why I'm leavingThat's why people leave each otherThey come to their senses and get selfish again.” - Henry Rollins

4. “You can love someone so much...But you can never love people as much as you can miss them.” - John Green

5. “I don't balance you like you need.""What the hell does that mean?" he exclaimed.My heart ached for him, and I was so sorry for what I'd done...but this was the truth of it all. "The fact that you have to ask says it all. When you find that person...you'll know.” - Richelle Mead

6. “And I'm a bad boy 'cause I don't even miss her. I'm a bad boy for breakin her heart” - Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers

7. “when things break, it's not the actual breaking that prevents them from getting back together again. it's because a little piece gets lost -- the two remaining ends couldn't fit together even if they wanted to. the whole shape has changed.” - David Levithan

8. “Très, très, triste...” - Suzanne Finnamore

9. “Naturally, I do blame Françoise. I blame her for having N in the first place. She was young, she was beautiful, she was married to a doctor, and she was intelligent. She could have abstained from producing her first son. It was wrong on a variety of levels.” - Suzanne Finnamore

10. “Although I notice there is never a truly good time to have a nice long chat with one´s mother-in-law, unless you are having an extraordinary life and marriage and your mother-in-law is, say, Maureen Dowd, or Indira Gandhi. Someone of that ilk.” - Suzanne Finnamore

11. “How can I grieve what is still in motion?" I ask her. "Shoes are still dropping all over the place. I´m not kidding," I say. "It´s Normandy out there.” - Suzanne Finnamore

12. “They feel life is for the taking, and that everyone deserves happiness no matter what the cost. I must remember these tricks if I ever decide to have my soul surgically removed.” - Suzanne Finnamore

13. “I review what I know once again, confronting the monolith now alien and almost unconnected to me: my marriage.” - Suzanne Finnamore

14. “I used to loathe ambivalence; now I adore it. Ambivalence is my new best friend.” - Suzanne Finnamore

15. “There is that, and there is also the Irreconcilable Differences line. It seems so catchall, so vague. You could say that about anyone, any man and woman at all. Jesus and Mary Magdalene: "Irreconcilable Differences." JFK and Jackie, anyone at all. It´s built into the man-woman thing. What kind of paltry reason is that? "Insanity" is another box to be checked on the divorce petition, the only alternative to "Irreconcilable Differences." I would like to check it.” - Suzanne Finnamore

16. “I love you as the mother of my child": the kiss of death.Mother of His Child: demotion. I am beginning to see this truism: Mothers are not always wives. I have been stripped of a piece of self.” - Suzanne Finnamore

17. “He announces that lately he keeps losing things. "Like your wife and child," I want to say, but don´t. At fourty, I´ve learned not to say everything clever, not to score every point.” - Suzanne Finnamore

18. “I´ve blown it, the whole grisly charade.” - Suzanne Finnamore

19. “So many events and moments that seemed insignificant add up. I remember how for the last Valentine´s Day, N gave flowers but no card. In restaurants, he looked off into the middle distance while my hand would creep across the table to hold his. He would always let go first. I realize I can´t remember his last spontaneous gesture of affection.” - Suzanne Finnamore

20. “Take me now, God!" I shout to the inky sky. "I´m ready.""You´re not ready. You´re not even divorced yet," Bunny says. "You cannot die married to that man.” - Suzanne Finnamore

21. “The snag about marriage is, it isn´t worth the divorce.” - Suzanne Finnamore

22. “Surprises, I feel now, are primarily a form of violence.” - Suzanne Finnamore

23. “You get what you give," we will tell his sorry, selfish ass." The Betty Lady has spoken. I detect a Bronx accent."But," I demur, "it will make the other woman say, ´See? She IS a jealous and paranoid and pushy wife.´"The Betty Lady rips open a cell phone statement with a nail file and, without looking up at me, says, "Let me tell you something, honey. In my experience? The only thing they care about is what they see in the mirror each morning and WINNING...or their perception of winning.” - Suzanne Finnamore

24. “I am replete with stamina in finding out every single fact I can about this whole affair.Yet, I think, do I want to pull that thread? Do I want to unleash the truth, unravel deceit, and kill reality as I´ve known it? It is irreparable, if I do, from the moment we met until now. It is long. If I discover too much that is false about what I thought my past was, Time will be skewed even further. I already have a poor connection with the present. Example: I have no sense of what day it is. It´s better.” - Suzanne Finnamore

25. “The Betty Lady explains love and splitting up: "It´s like playing the shell game with Jesus. You can´t figure anything out; it´s best not to try. You´ll just humiliate yourself.” - Suzanne Finnamore

26. “For me, it´s sloth," I say. "Hedonistic sloth and escapism.” - Suzanne Finnamore

27. “To keep myself from harming or calling N and to stave off the rage and despair, I focus on my extraordinary son, drink midrange Chardonnay every night after he is asleep, and make a barrage of late-night mail-order retail purchases placed from the couch. The couch has officially become my second battle station. I am angry and I have credit And I´m all blackened inside; I should wear a pointy witch hat around Larkspur as I go to the bank and drop A off at day care. It would be more honest.” - Suzanne Finnamore

28. “This does not escape my notice, it is a context. I resent the fact of a context; my social status has shifted and no one is going to acknowldege it, that´s certain. I´m expected to be Brave and Rise Above. I dress for the role; I must look far better now that I did when I was married. I must look pulled together into a nice tight Hermès knot of self-containment. I don´t make the rules; I just do my best to follow them.” - Suzanne Finnamore

29. “God is great and God is good," Lisa says. "But where are the Apache attack helicopters when you need them?” - Suzanne Finnamore

30. “I know my vision is impaired and cannot be trusted with even the simplest tasks, much less dating. Not that I´ve come within talon distance of a man.” - Suzanne Finnamore

31. “I´m just not sending out the right vibe lately. Perhaps the fact that I wear stained sweatpants and free T-shirts is holding me back. I just can´t seem to get back into the intelligent-slut-for-hire outfits that lure men; even shoes with laces evade me. Plus my hair is Fran Lebowitz-esque. I think my eyes are getting closer together. I don´t know.” - Suzanne Finnamore

32. “How could you do that to me?" I repeat. I don´t have to itemize. He knows what I speak of.Eventually N produces three answers, in this order:1. "Because I am a complete rotter." I silently agree, but it´s a cop-out: I have maggots, therefore I am dead.2. "I was stressed at work and unhappy and we were always fighting...and you know I was just crazy..."I cut him off, saying, "You don´t get to be crazy. You did exactly what you chose to do."Which is true, he did. It is what he has always done. He therefore seems slightly puzzled at the need for further diagnosis, which may explain his third response:3. "I don´t know."This, I feel instinctively, is the correct answer. How can I stay angry with him for being what he is? I was, after all, his wife, and I chose him. No coincidences, that´s what Freud said. None. Ever.I wipe my eyes on my sleeve and walk toward the truck, saying to his general direction, "Fine. At least now I know: You don´t know."I stop and turn around and fire one more question: a bullet demanding attention in the moment it enters the skin and spreads outward, an important bullet that must be acknowledged."What did you feel?"After a lengthy pause, he answers. "I felt nothing."And that, I realize too late, was not the whole truth, but was a valid part of the truth.Oh, and welcome to the Serengeti. That too.” - Suzanne Finnamore

33. “Like wading through water; That hard, that slow.” - Lauren Henderson

34. “Moving on is easy. It's staying moved on that's trickier.” - Katerina Stoykova Klemer

35. “Even on my weakest daysI get a little bit stronger” - Sara Evans

36. “The problem with breaking up with someone, if you are a little unsure — and so often, people are unsure — is that breaking up involves persuasion. You have to persuade your ex that it is better this way for everyone. And this is difficult if you have not entirely persuaded yourself. It is especially tricky to do this if you are also naked, and making two cups of coffee.” - Adam Thirlwell

37. “That's how it is with relationships, it's a part of life, and all the great love songs and poems and films have been written by people who were standing where I was that morning as Simon shut the door. Doesn't make it any easier though. ” - Jane Green

38. “Why not? Give me one good reason why we shouldn't get married."Because trying to fuck you is like trying to french-kiss a very.... small and... lively gerbil? With braces?” - Bret Easton Ellis

39. “Either give me your hand, or end it now, and put us both out of our misery” - Judith McNaught

40. “Don't do this to us." He warned, his voice hoarse with angry desperation as he realize he was losing her. "You're letting eleven years of mistrust color everything you've discovered I've done".” - Judith McNaught

41. “…..she needed him to know she did not care. She was spirited, tenacious, and full of contempt for him.” - Jamie Weise

42. “But every spiteful word she ever wrote him was effortless love clenched in her fists. Her heart screaming for stability in this fiery game of desire.” - Jamie Weise

43. “When we are in love, we are convinced nobody else will do. But as time goes, others do do, and often do do, much much better.” - Jamie Weise

44. “He looks like a runway model. How in the world am I going to be able to reject that? The world is so unfair. Seriously, it's like turning Brad Pitt down for a date. The girl who could actually do it should win an award for idiot of the century.” - Colleen Houck

45. “Lots of things can be fixed. Things can be fixed. But many times, relationships between people cannot be fixed, because they should not be fixed. You're aboard a ship setting sail, and the other person has joined the inland circus, or is boarding a different ship, and you just can't be with each other anymore. Because you shouldn't be.” - C. JoyBell C.

46. “It seemed funny that one day I would go to bed in her arms and the next not feel anything, like a switch had gone off. But no, that wasn’t honest either. This had been building for a long time. Our silences were getting longer. Our arguments more frequent. How do you stay with someone when there are no dreams to build? No purpose to accomplish? No meaning? No meaning —that was the monster that drove us away from one another in the end. Always.” - Steven L. Peck

47. “Always a trade. Always a compromise. Until there wasn't anything left to bargain with, because neither one us had any clue what to do.” - Stephanie Campbell

48. “When she left, it was like someone had ripped my heart out, crumbled it up like a flimsy piece of loose leaf paper and crammed it back into my chest. It somehow managed to work, but it would never, ever feel the same.” - Stephanie Campbell

49. “Screw the daring tough guy image, what happened with us broke me.” - Stephanie Campbell

50. “Two words. Three vowels. Four constenants. Seven letters. It can either cut you open to the core and leave you in ungodly pain or it can free your soul and lift a tremendous weight off you shoulders. The phrase is: It's over.” - Maggi Richard

51. “If I catch you making eyes at Hunter Chenier tonight, it's over between us.' She looked over her shoulder. 'That a promise?” - Nina Bruhns

52. “I wore your promise on my finger for one yearI'll wear your name on my heart til I dieBecause you were my boy, you were my only boy forever.” - Coco J. Ginger

53. “Bittersweet? No, just bitter, the taste of your tongue.Words you can’t have back, so they linger.” - Coco J. Ginger

54. “He's pressing me to his chest. I melt. Oh, this is where I want to beI rest my head against him, and he kisses my hair repeatedly. This is home. He smells of linen, fabric softener, body wash, and my favourite smell - Christian. For a moment, I allow myself the illusion that all will be well, and it soothes my ravaged soul” - E.L. James

55. “Our break-up had been a resounding anti-climax. I wanted to be wept over, bitterly. I wanted to be fought for. Mourned, or regretted just a little.I wanted to feel like I was someone who'd been worth having in the first place.” - Catherine Sanderson

56. “I do still love you. I don't love you enough to be able to give you the things we dreamed about and planned.” - Catherine Sanderson

57. “Denis's love for Mattia had burned itself out, like a forgotten candle in an empty room, leaving behind a ravenous discontent.” - Paolo Giordano

58. “I miss your smile… but I miss mine more.” - Laurel House

59. “لطالما إرتبط الفراق بالكبرياء، والخيانة بالجفاء ،،. .” - يامي أحمد

60. “كل الحكايات لازم تعدى يا حسام.المهم ما نتكسرش. أنا لو حاحكى لك لازم تأخد اجازة و تقعد تعيط جنبى.لكن أنا كنت بقوم فورا.مفيش وقت اضيعه.يمكن الحياة قى أمريكا بتعلمك كا ينفعش توقف لحظة واحدة و الا حد تانى هياخد مكانك” - سحر الموجي

61. “And that's when I know it's over. As soon as you start thinking about the beginning, it's the end.” - Junot Diaz

62. “Yeah, great at the physical level level, but I still need more. Sorry. Maybe someday I'll accidentally fall in love with you after all, and we'll be right back here.” - Robin Brande

63. “Travis was going to be a part of that, and if he wouldn’t let me save him, I had to save myself.” - Jamie McGuire

64. “You put me through hell. On purpose. Made me suffer. And there’s no end in sight. I don’t know what the fuck you’re doing, ace, but this Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde shit ain’t cutting it with me.” - Sylvia Day

65. “We ruined each other by being together. We destroyed each other’s dreams.” - Kate Chisman

66. “Just because a relationship ends, it doesn't mean it's not worth having.” - Sarah Mlynowski

67. “Sometimes things end worse for one side than the other. These 'injured parties' always seem to see themselves as victims of a moral outrage. They never feel simply rejected, but also abused. I've known many women who were great believers in the curative powers of indignation.” - Lionel Shriver

68. “I do. I still love him so much. And I feel so worthless because he doesn’t love me anymore.” - Daria Snadowsky

69. “Ours was a history of well intentioned beginnings that end with a fight at every turn.” - Enver Aysever

70. “The only thing that will ever be real, is this moment,' I turned to the statue, 'when you made me feel alive, when you made me feel real, when I felt like you really love me. Now? I'm just your monster, Frankie. I will always be a monster.” - Rae Hachton

71. “Run, sweetheart, run.” - Rae Hachton

72. “Hands that never touch. Lips that never meet. The Almost Lovers, never to be.” - Rae Hachton

73. “A note, who writes a note like that? Who were you to write one to me? it boomed inside me the whole time, an explosion over and over, the joy of what you wrote to me jumpy shrapnel in my bloodstream. I can't have it near me anymore, I'm grenading it back to you, as soon as I unfold it and read it and cry one more time. Because me too, and fuck you. Even now.” - Daniel Handler

74. “But it’s December now, and the sky is bright, and it’s clear to me. I’m telling you why we broke up, Ed. I’m writing it in this letter, the whole truth of why it happened. And the truth is that I goddamn loved you so much.” - Daniel Handler

75. “If I wasn't so phenomenal. I would go back to you.” - Coco J. Ginger

76. “Two days after my dad's funeral, my mom went on a mission. I never understood it until then--that sometimes a spy doesn't need a cover so much as she needs a shield.” - Ally Carter

77. “Crouched on the roof between BEx and Liz, I wasn't a girl who had just broken up with her boyfriend; I looked at my watch and check my gear instead of crying. I had a mission objective and not a broken heart.” - Ally Carter

78. “It's not you it's me' she couldn't use that line. Even though it really was her and not him, everyone thought that line really meant, 'it's not me. It's definitely you.' There was still a part of her that thought perhaps she shouldn't do it at all. In Andrew she had all the raw ingredients for a perfect life. Here was a grown-up, good-looking, solvent, generous, warm-hearted man who adored her. A man who adored her even when she looked like the loch ness monsters little sister and had a terrible temper to match.It didn't take a huge leap of imagination to see Andrew standing at the top of the aisle, looking back at lou walking towards him with a grin as wide as the English channel. She could see him painting the nursery yellow; pushing a pram that contained two lovely brown haired twins (one boy, one girl); presenting her woth an eternity ring on their tenth anniversary, taking the twins to school, teaching them how to play football on long, summer holidays in Tuscany, giving the daughter away at her own wedding, cosying up to Lou on the veranda of their perfect house as their retirement stretched ahead of them- a long straight road of well-planned for, financially comfortable and perpetually sunny days. 'oh god' Lou poured herself a vodka.” - Chris Manby

79. “There is never a right time to break someone's heart. And anyone with even a microgram of sensitivity in his or her body will agonise for an age over that timing. Only problem is there is always some reason not to make someone unhappy. The day a relationship end, if that relationship was at all important to the suckers involved, becomes as important an anniversary as a wedding day or birthday.Obviously, the average person doesn't want to kick someone they once loved while that person is down.  It's not just hard times when someone is down that become obstacles to making your getaway. After times of bereavement, unemployment and general unhappiness, those events that should be happy ones also make some times off limits for the eager would- be dumper. Christmas, birthdays, Easter  all impossible. A clever person with a sensitive lover that they sense is not quite as into them as he or she used to be, could starve off the inevitable for years by carefully spacing out this crucial dates.” - Chris Manby

80. “Things are really fucked up right now. We hardly see each other anymore and when we do, we go to sleep on opposite sides of the bed” - Lucinda Rosenfeld

81. “He seemed so terribly weak. She would have had more respect for him if he'd told her to go fuck herself.' I have to go to sleep' she'd scathe.Then she'd roll over, and so would he. They'd be lying there like two strangers who just happened to be sharing the same bed. It was in those moments she began to plot her escape.” - Lucinda Rosenfeld

82. “People give up on each other long before they give up on themselves, and they do that, too.” - Donna Lynn Hope

83. “Every woman that finally figured out her worth, has picked up her suitcases of pride and boarded a flight to freedom, which landed in the valley of change.” - Shannon L. Alder

84. “Since there's no help, come, let us kiss and part, Nay, I have done, you get no more of me, And I am glad, yea, glad with all my heart, That thus so cleanly I myself can free. Shake hands for ever, cancel all our vows, And when we meet at any time again Be it not seen in either of our brows That we one jot of former love retain. Now at the last gasp of Love's latest breath, When, his pulse failing, Passion speechless lies, When Faith is kneeling by his bed of death, And Innocence is closing up his eyes, Now, if thou wouldst, when all have giv'n him over, From death to life thou might'st him yet recover.- Sonnet LXI” - Michael Drayton

85. “But why do you have to keep your distance from me, why can’t you see me, talk to me like a real person…like Drew, not some kind of distant non-friend.”“Non-friend?” Drew smiled drily at my choice of words. “I like the sound of that better than ‘friends’, Summer. It probably describes us best.” - Perfect Summer” - Kailin Gow

86. “Watch me go. Watch me. Because you said i couldn't. Because you thought I wouldn't. Go on, cry now. Cry.” - Kellie Elmore

87. “...and I laugh and I spin and dance and frolic in ecstasy and I... I hurt no more, while you...you petrified little man, are left to wonder if it's you I speak of.” - Kellie Elmore