adjective
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shameless and bold
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made of or resembling brass
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having a ringing metallic sound like that of a brass trumpet
verb
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to face and overcome boldly or shamelessly
the witness brazened out the prosecutor's questions
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to make (oneself, etc) bold or brash
Synonym Usage
See bold.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of brazen
First recorded before 1000; Middle English brasen (adjective), Old English bræsen “(made) of brass”; see brass
Explanation
With brazen disregard for the sign that said "No Cellphones," the woman took a long call in the dentist's waiting room, irritating the other patients. Brazen describes something shocking or something that's done shamelessly. The Middle English word was brasen, "made of brass," from Old English bræs, "brass." In its literal sense, this word can mean "made of or resembling brass," as in a brazen drinking cup from a medieval castle. It can also mean overly or disrespectfully bold. A near synonym of brazen is our English word brassy, which has the additional meaning of being loud and showy.
Vocabulary lists containing brazen
100 Top "SAT" Words
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Advanced English Words
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Grade 11, List 2
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Our BBC team has travelled across the UK - including to Plymouth, Rochdale, Shrewsbury, Newport and Bradford - exposing what we have found to be brazen criminality on the High Street.
From BBC • Jun. 7, 2026
A Dutch court Friday handed jail terms to three men convicted of the brazen theft of a 2,500-year-old golden Romanian helmet that sparked outrage in Romania and the art world.
From Barron's • Jun. 5, 2026
“I’m quite frankly troubled by what I see as a brazen disregard,” Commissioner Ray Jackson remarked about Levy during a public hearing, characterizing the situation as “a direct affront to the people of California.”
From The Wall Street Journal • May 16, 2026
He added that today’s action was perhaps slightly less brazen than previous oil-market activity because the trades today occurred during London morning hours.
From MarketWatch • May 6, 2026
One would say there was no end to this brazen sky.
From "The Good Earth" by Pearl S. Buck
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
