To Be Divided
To Be Split, To Break
intransitive verb, ichidan verb
Remember how 割る is "to divide"? Now you're learning the intransitive version. Instead of you doing the dividing, something just gets divided or split up. So this is to be divided or to be split.
It can also mean to break, as in ワイングラスが割れる (the wine glass breaks). After all, when an object breaks, it’s divided into parts, right?
The reading is shared with 割る.
ガラス製のフグの置物が、テーブルから落ちて割れてしまった。
The glass fugu ornament fell off the table and broke.
プロジェクトの進め方について、メンバーの意見が真っ二つに割れてしまった。
Regarding the approach to the project, the members' opinions were completely divided into two.
「大変なことが起こった！」 「どうしたの？」「朝起きたらおしりが二つに割れていたんだ！」「なんだ、そんなこと？私なんか五つに割れているわよ。」
"Something terrible happened!" "What's wrong?" "When I woke up, my butt was split up into two!" "Oh, that's not a big deal. My butt is split up into five."
ついに犯人の身元が割れたぞ！
We finally uncovered the identity of the criminal!
大便がしたくてたまらなかった彼は、ドアを拳で割れるほど強く叩いた。
He needed to poop so badly that he almost broke the door from pounding on it with his fists.