To remove the tension at a first meeting, at the opening of a party, etc.: “That joke really broke the ice at the conference; we all relaxed afterward.”

Whats the origin of break the ice?

While some might connect the idiom to the 18th century when special ice-breaking ships were built to help explore he polar regions, the first recorded use actually goes back to the 17th century (1678) when Samuel Butler used it in his poem Hudibras. “The Oratour – At last broke silence, and the Ice.”

The 13 Best Ways to Break the Ice
Show your interest in the person you’re talking to. Avoid Yes/No questions. Let the other person explain things you don’t know. Read the news. Share your experience. Use the F.O.R.D. Be honest. Learn from the best.

Is breaking the ice a metaphor?

‘Break the ice’ began its life as a metaphor. It means to do some small thing that will dispel the awkwardness of a situation before the real business of that situation begins.

“Break the Ice”

Shakespeare wrote this group of words in his 1590 play “The Taming of the Shrew.” It means to overcome a socially awkward situation.