abreast

[uh-brest]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR abreast ON THESAURUS.COM

adverb, adjective

side by side; beside each other in a line: They walked two abreast down the street.

equal to or alongside in progress, attainment, or awareness (usually followed by of or with): to keep abreast of scientific developments; keeping abreast with the times.

Origin of abreast

First recorded in 1590–1600; a-¹ + breast

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for abreast

acquainted, informed, beside, equal, level, opposite, contemporary, familiar, knowledgeable, versed, up

Examples from the Web for abreast

Contemporary Examples of abreast

Curious housewives stepped out in their aprons to watch them march down the road, four abreast waving two large American flags.
The GOP’s Last Identity Crisis Remade U.S. Politics
Michael Wolraich
July 24, 2014
Social media has kept me abreast of many plot twists and turns as firestorms of outrage and smugness come and go.
The ‘GOT’ Red Viper and Mountain Duel, and a History of Medieval Trial by Combat
Steven Isaac
June 3, 2014
Paramilitary troops in grey urban camouflage moved into the square, five abreast, forcing demonstrators into side-streets.
As Putin Wins Re-Election by Landslide, Both Sides Reluctantly Rally
Owen Matthews, Anna Nemtsova
March 5, 2012
We will keep you abreast of these developments and let you know once the RSS feed is live.
Note to Readers
David Frum
January 18, 2012
Drivers were jostling three abreast on the tight oval track, and then a couple of cars collided.
IndyCar Driver’s Final Moments
Allen St. John
October 18, 2011

Historical Examples of abreast

"They would come in twenty abreast to the licks where we lay in wait for them," said the Tallega.
The Trail Book
Mary Austin
As I got abreast of the main-mast, I saw some one had let run the halyards.
Ned Myers
James Fenimore Cooper
By degrees they let the boat drop back till her bow was abreast of the ladder.
Fair Margaret
H. Rider Haggard
They were then just abreast of the park of Montivilliers, and there they witnessed a most horrible sight.
The Downfall
Emile Zola
The window was "abreast" of them, but also it was a trifle high.
Thankful's Inheritance
Joseph C. Lincoln

British Dictionary definitions for abreast

abreast

adjective (postpositive)

alongside each other and facing in the same direction

(foll by of or with) up to date (with); fully conversant (with)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for abreast

adv.

mid-15c., on brest, from a- (1) + breast (n.); the notion is of "with breasts in line." To keep abreast in figurative sense of "stay up-to-date" is from 1650s.