2 : a crank-shaped device for turning a bit
3 : something (as a tie, prop, or clamp) that distributes, directs, or resists pressure or weight
4 plural : SUSPENDERS
5 : an appliance for supporting a body part (as the shoulders)
6 plural : a dental appliance used to exert pressure to straighten misaligned teeth
7 : one of two marks { } used to connect words or items to be considered together
Synonyms
[1] couple, duo, pair, twain, twosome—more at PAIR
[3] bulwark, buttress, mount, shore, stay, support, underpinning—more at SUPPORT
brace·let noun [ORIGIN: ME, fr. MF, dim. of bras arm, fr. L bracchium, fr. Gk brachiōn]
1 : an ornamental band or chain worn around the wrist
2 : something (as handcuffs) resembling a bracelet
bra·ce·ro noun, plural -ros : a Mexican laborer admitted to the U.S. esp. for seasonal farm work
brac·ing adjective : giving strength, vigor, or freshness
Synonyms
invigorating, refreshing, restorative, stimulative, tonic—more at TONIC
brack·en noun : a large coarse fern; also : a growth of such ferns
1bracket noun 1 : a projecting framework or arm designed to support weight; also : a shelf on such framework
2 : one of a pair of punctuation marks [ ] used esp. to enclose interpolated matter
3 : a continuous section of a series; especially : one of a graded series of income groups
Synonyms
category, class, division, family, grade, group, kind, order, set, species, type—more at CLASS
2bracket verb 1 : to furnish or fasten with brackets
2 a : to place within brackets
b : to separate or group with or as if with brackets
brack·ish adjective : somewhat salty
— brack·ish·ness noun
bract noun : an often modified leaf on or at the base of a flower stalk
brad noun : a slender nail with a small head
brae noun, chiefly Scottish
: a hillside esp. along a river
1brag verb bragged; brag·ging : to talk or assert boastfully
— brag·ger noun
Synonyms
boast, crow, plume, swagger—more at BOAST
2brag noun : arrogant talk or manner
Synonyms
bluster, bombast, gas, grandiloquence, rant—more at BOMBAST
brag·ga·do·cio noun, plural -cios 1 : BRAGGART
2 : empty boasting
3 : arrogant pretension : COCKINESS
brag·gart noun : one who brags
Brah·man or Brah·min noun 1 : a Hindu of the highest caste traditionally assigned to the priesthood
2 : any of a breed of large vigorous humped cattle developed in the southern U.S. from Indian stock
3 usually Brahmin : a person of high social standing and cultivated intellect and taste
Brah·man·ism noun : orthodox Hinduism
1braid verb 1 : to form (strands) into a braid : PLAIT; also : to make from braids
2 : to ornament with braid
2braid noun 1 : a length of braided hair
2 : a cord or ribbon of three or more interwoven strands
Synonyms
[1, 2] lace, plait; also rickrack, stripe
braille noun, often cap : a system of writing for the blind that uses characters made up of raised dots
1brain noun 1 : the part of the vertebrate central nervous system enclosed in the skull and continuous with the spinal cord that is composed of neurons and supporting structures and is the center of thought and nervous system control; also : a centralized mass of nerve tissue in an invertebrate
2 a : INTELLECT, INTELLIGENCE — often used in pl.
b : a very intelligent or intellectual person
— brained adjective
Synonyms
genius, intellect, thinker, whiz, wizard—more