The words breach and breech are pronounced the same way but they have different meanings and uses. As with other homophones, this causes confusion among writers and sometimes results to mix-ups. This post will help you determines these differences and enable you to use these terms more accurately in your writing.
The word breach can be used in different ways but it is most commonly used as a noun pertaining to “infraction or violation of a law, obligation, tie, or standard,” “a broken, ruptured, or torn condition or area,” or “a break in accustomed friendly relations.”
Intercontinental Hotel: IHG, Receiver Manager on collision over breach of contract
VanguardLondon officer charged with breach of trust following Waterloo Regional Police investigation
GlobalnewsEquifax under pressure after data breach update
BBC News
It may also function as a verb which means “to make a gap in and break through a wall, barrier, or defense” or “to break or fail to observe a law, agreement, or code of conduct.”
Student privacy breached with website upload, says Sask. privacy commissioner
CBCOriental China, Si Xi Restaurant in Chinatown caught breaching liquor licensing conditions
Channel NewsAsiaBreached bail by contacting brother
Derry Journal
On the other hand, the term breech is most commonly used as a noun referring to “the hind end of the body.” In medicine, the breech presentation refers to “presentation of the fetus in which the breech is the first part to appear at the uterine cervix.”
Here’s How Your OB Knows Your Baby Is Breech
RomperIncredible video shows doctor re-positioning a breech baby still INSIDE the womb
The Sun‘Bernard was a complicated breech birth – he suffered brain damage, and then got meningitis’ – sister worried for his future
Independent
Now that we’ve discussed the differences between the words breach and breech, you should be able to distinguish and use them properly. Remember that breach is similar to “break” as it refers to breaking an agreement, law or obligation while breech usually refers to the butt-first position of a fetus.