Showing results for "brake"

• past tense form of break.

brake

¹ American  

[brayk] / breɪk /

noun

1. a device for slowing or stopping a vehicle or other moving mechanism by the absorption or transfer of the energy of momentum, usually by means of friction.

2. brakes, the drums, shoes, tubes, levers, etc., making up such a device on a vehicle.

3. anything that has a slowing or stopping effect.

4. Also called brakeman. a member of a bobsled team who operates the brake.

5. Also called breaker. Textiles. a tool or machine for breaking up flax or hemp, to separate the fiber.

6. Also called press brake. a machine for bending sheet metal to a desired shape.

7. Obsolete. an old instrument of torture.

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verb (used with object)

braked, braking

1. to slow or stop by means of or as if by means of a brake.

   Synonyms:

   bridle, curb, restrain, stay, arrest, halt

2. to furnish with brakes.

3. to process (flax or hemp) by crushing it in a brake.

verb (used without object)

braked, braking

1. to use or run a brake.

2. to stop or slow upon being braked.

3. to run a hoisting machine.

brake ² American  

[brayk] / breɪk /

noun

1. a place overgrown with bushes, brambles, or cane.

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brake ³ American  

[brayk] / breɪk /

noun

1. any of several large or coarse ferns, especially the bracken, Pteridium aquilinum.

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brake ⁴ American  

[brayk] / breɪk /

verb

Archaic.

1. simple past tense of break.

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brake ¹ British  

/ breɪk /

noun

1. 1. (often plural) a device for slowing or stopping a vehicle, wheel, shaft, etc, or for keeping it stationary, esp by means of friction See also drum brake disc brake hydraulic brake air brake handbrake

   2. ( as modifier )

      the brake pedal

2. a machine or tool for crushing or breaking flax or hemp to separate the fibres

3. Also called: brake harrow. a heavy harrow for breaking up clods

4. short for brake van

5. short for shooting brake

6. Also spelt: break. an open four-wheeled horse-drawn carriage

7. an obsolete word for rack 1

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verb

1. to slow down or cause to slow down, by or as if by using a brake

2. (tr) to crush or break up using a brake

brake ² British  

/ breɪk /

noun

1. an area of dense undergrowth, shrubs, brushwood, etc; thicket

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brake ³ British  

/ breɪk /

noun

1. another name for bracken See also rock brake

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brake ⁴ British  

/ breɪk /

verb

1. archaic a past tense of break

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Other Word Forms

• brakeless
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of brake¹

First recorded in 1400–50; of uncertain origin; possibly a special use of obsolete brake “a bridle, curb,” from Middle Dutch braeke “(flax) brake” (a tool that separates flax fibers from their woody stems); akin to break

Origin of brake²

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English fernebrake “fern thicket, fernbrake,” Old English (fearn)bracu “bed of fern, (fern)brake,” akin to Middle Low German brake “branch, twig, tree stump”

Origin of brake³

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English brake, probably by back formation from braken “thicket of fern,” taken as plural; see bracken

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Explanation

To brake is to stop. The noun brake is the pedal in the car that stops the vehicle when pressed. When you want to brake, step on the brake)! In Middle English breken meant things that stopped others, such as a bridle for a horse. If your bicycle screeches at the bottom of every hill, maybe you should have the brakes checked. French Poet Paul Valery saw a brake as a stopping agent for more than just a vehicle: “Man's great misfortune is that he has no organ, no kind of eyelid or brake, to mask or block a thought, or all thought, when he wants to.”

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

brake braked braking

A recent sharp rise in government bond yields is acting as a brake on the economy, Moulin noted.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026

But he escaped a five-second penalty because one of the transgressions was when he suffered a long brake pedal caused by heat soak after his pit stop, so he was excused.

From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026

Surprisingly, removing this brake did not make the cleanup process more effective.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 5, 2026

Rush hour traffic was moving slowly when Rios’s Expedition entered one of the busiest junctions in the San Fernando Valley, but the SUV did not appear to brake before it T-boned the bus, witnesses said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026

Papa hadn’t practiced his driving but for a few minutes before church let out, so he wasn’t all that sure he could remember where the foot brake was or how much gas to feed.

From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns

He braked hard but was travelling at between 25 and 27mph when he hit the bike, the court heard.

From BBC ● Apr. 7, 2026

The car braked, steered and accelerated more smoothly than my Ford Mustang Mach-E.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 30, 2026

“The Waymo Driver braked hard, reducing speed from approximately 17 mph to under 6 mph before contact was made.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 29, 2026

When she braked, a third agent became visible standing in front of the car.

From Slate ● Jan. 7, 2026

The engine gave out a sudden gunned roar as he rolled the fat car up really fast, then braked sharply, three or four feet away from me.

From "Firegirl" by Tony Abbott

Autonomous trucks can reduce fuel consumption by 10% because they can calibrate speeds and optimize acceleration, braking and coasting with more precision, the companies say.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 17, 2026

This quick acceleration and braking can help insects determine their position and maintain clear vision.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 22, 2026

Authorities are also reviewing the SUV’s event data recorder to determine Rios’ speed, braking and acceleration in the seconds before the deadly crash.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026

The pressure that was already there to rethink the layout for next year and provide a longer straight and big braking zone to allow overtaking will be significant.

From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026

Harry heard Griphook shout, “No!” but there was no braking: They zoomed through it.

From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling

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Related Words

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