[Essay] Exposure - Breakage

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alikhalili71

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Hi,
Is the following sentence right and formal? I want to use this sentence in academic writing.
The sound barriers breakage leads to exposure of many cities to sound pollution.
 

Rover_KE

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No.

'The breaking of the sound barrier leads to the exposure...'
 

alikhalili71

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No.

'The breaking of the sound barrier leads to the exposure...'
How would be this sentence if I wanted to use the noun "breakage"?
 

bhaisahab

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Matthew Wai

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The Oxford dictionary says 'breakage' means 'The action of breaking something, or the fact of being broken', why doesn't it work here?
 

alikhalili71

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Is it right to use plural form of "sound barrier"? If yes, is it common?
 

Rover_KE

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No. If you want to refer to a number of occasions when the sound barrier is broken, call them 'sonic booms'.
 

MikeNewYork

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Matthew, it is a different kind of "break". When one breaks a bone or a plate, the original thing is broken into pieces. When one breaks the sound barrier, the sound barrier remains intact.
 

Matthew Wai

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In 'breaking the sound barrier', 'breaking' means 'breaking through', to which 'breakage' does not apply because it means 'breaking into pieces'.
Is it correct?
 

MikeNewYork

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