Broke suddenly with a sharp sound, or spoke sharply to someone; past tense of snap.
From Middle Dutch 'snappen' or German 'schnappen' (to snatch); the word is partly imitative, representing the quick, sharp sound and motion; it became common in English by the 1600s.
The word 'snapped' brilliantly captures two different things—a physical break AND an emotional break—because our brains recognize the same pattern in both: sudden, harsh, irreversible change!
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