What it means
Bruk is Jamaican Patois for broke or broken. You can use it when you've got no money, when something's physically mashed up, or when a person looks worn out and done in. It's a quick everyday word with that same rough edge every time: something's damaged, empty, or not holding itself together right.
Usage examples
"Mi waan link up, but mi bruk bad, pocket bruk too. Phone screen bruk from yesterday, so mi a stay yard till payday, seen?"
"I can't come out tonight, I'm proper bruk till payday."
"Mind that chair, the leg's bruk and it'll tip you straight on the floor."
"Nah ask me fi spot you, mi bruk till Friday and the fridge a echo back at me."
"Yo, don't fling the bag pon the table so hard, the zip already bruk."
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Where it comes from
Bruk comes from Jamaican Patois, where it works as the local form of broken and also grew into a common way to say broke. In Patois, the same word often stretches across money trouble, physical damage, and personal wear-and-tear. Through reggae, dancehall, and diaspora speech, bruk spread well beyond Jamaica.
Other ways to say it
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