brace

[ breys ]

/ breɪs /

|||

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR brace ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

something that holds parts together or in place, as a clasp or clamp.

anything that imparts rigidity or steadiness.

Also called bitbrace, bitstock. Machinery. a device for holding and turning a bit for boring or drilling.

Building Trades. a piece of timber, metal, etc., for supporting or positioning another piece or portion of a framework.

Nautical. (on a square-rigged ship) a rope by which a yard is swung about and secured horizontally.

Music. leather loops sliding upon the tightening cords of a drum to change their tension and the drum's pitch.

Often braces. Dentistry. a round or flat metal wire placed against the surfaces of the teeth for straightening irregularly arranged teeth.

Medicine/Medical. an appliance for supporting a weak joint or joints.

braces, Chiefly British. suspender(def 1).

a pair; couple: a brace of grouse.

Printing.

one of two characters { or } used to enclose words or lines to be considered together.
bracket(def 7).

Music. connected staves.

a protective band covering the wrist or lower part of the arm, especially a bracer.

Military. a position of attention with exaggeratedly stiff posture.

verb (used with object), braced, brac·ing.

to furnish, fasten, or strengthen with or as if with a brace.

to fix firmly; make steady; secure against pressure or impact: He braces himself when the ship rolls. Brace yourself for some bad news.

to make tight; increase the tension of.

to act as a stimulant to.

Nautical. to swing or turn around (the yards of a ship) by means of the braces.

Military. to order (a subordinate) to assume and maintain a brace.

verb (used without object), braced, brac·ing.

Military. to assume a brace.

Verb Phrases

brace in, Nautical. to brace (the yards of a square-rigged vessel) more nearly athwartships, as for running free.

Nearby words

brabançon, brabble, brabham, braccate, braccio, brace, brace and bit, brace jack, brace molding, brace root, brace table

Idioms

brace up, Informal. to summon up one's courage; become resolute: She choked back her tears and braced up.

Origin of brace

1300–50; (noun) Middle English < Anglo-French, Old French: pair of arms < Latin brā(c)chia plural (taken as feminine singular) of brā(c)chium arm (< Greek; see brachium); (v.) in part Middle English bracen (< Anglo-French bracier, derivative of brace; cf. embrace¹), in participle derivative of the noun

SYNONYMS FOR brace

1 vise.

4 stay, prop, strut.

10 See pair.

15 support, fortify, prop.

17 tauten, tense.

18 fortify.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR brace ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

o·ver·brace, verb (used with object), o·ver·braced, o·ver·brac·ing.re·brace, verb (used with object), re·braced, re·brac·ing.un·der·brace, nounun·der·brace, verb (used with object), un·der·braced, un·der·brac·ing.

well-braced, adjective

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

Examples from the Web for brace

In all likelihood, Democrats should brace for an ugly election night.
Biggest Midterm Issue? The Obamaphant in the Living Room|Dean Obeidallah|September 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
So, I conveyed this to Tom and we invited Tom over to our house for dinner and said, “Brace yourself.”
From ‘Lost’ to The Rapture: Creators Damon Lindelof and Tom Perrotta on HBO’s ‘The Leftovers’|Marlow Stern|June 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Kimye Heads Back to Vogue: Brace yourselves for the aftershock.
Anna Wintour Hosts DNC Fundraiser; Kimye Heads Back to 'Vogue'|The Fashion Beast Team|May 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She was released from the hospital with nothing more than a brace after two months.
Hallucinating Away a Heroin Addiction|Abby Haglage|May 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST

They have been told to brace themselves as the next few hours are critical.
Camilla's Brother 'Fighting For Life' After Fall In New York City|Tom Sykes|April 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Or ought she to brace herself to the terrible task of asking her to go?
The Benefactress|Elizabeth Beauchamp
"Brace yourself, Rowena," he said, and took her over to the control-room telewindow.
A Knyght Ther Was|Robert F. Young
Of all the wrathful settlers the most furious was Brace Timmins.
Kings in Exile|Sir Charles George Douglas Roberts
A brace is made of tin bent in the shape shown and riveted to the bottom of the bucket.
The Boy Mechanic, Book 2|Various
A stick nailed to the apex of each pair of spars served temporarily to brace them apart.
The Scientific American Boy|A. Russell (Alexander Russell) Bond

British Dictionary definitions for brace

brace

/ (breɪs) /

noun

a hand tool for drilling holes, with a socket to hold the drill at one end and a cranked handle by which the tool can be turnedIn full: hand brace See also brace and bit

something that steadies, binds, or holds up another thing

a structural member, such as a beam or prop, used to stiffen a framework

a sliding loop, usually of leather, attached to the cords of a drum: used to change its tension

a pair; two, esp of game birdsa brace of partridges

either of a pair of characters, { }, used for connecting lines of printing or writing or as a third sign of aggregation in complex mathematical or logical expressions that already contain parentheses and square brackets

Also called: accolade a line or bracket connecting two or more staves of music

(often plural) an appliance of metal bands and wires that can be tightened to maintain steady pressure on the teeth for correcting uneven alignment

med any of various appliances for supporting the trunk, a limb, or teeth

another word for bracer 2

(in square-rigged sailing ships) a rope that controls the movement of a yard and thus the position of a sail

See braces

verb (mainly tr)

to provide, strengthen, or fit with a brace

to steady or prepare (oneself or something) as before an impact

(also intr) to stimulate; freshen; invigoratesea air is bracing

to control the horizontal movement of (the yards of a square-rigged sailing ship)

Word Origin for brace

C14: from Old French: the two arms, from Latin bracchia arms

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 brace (1 of 2)

brace

early 14c., "piece of armor for the arms," also "thong, strap for fastening," from Old French brace, braz "arms," also "length measured by two arms" (12c., Modern French bras "arm, power;" brasse "fathom, armful, breaststroke"), from Latin bracchia, plural of bracchium "an arm, a forearm," from Greek brakhion "an arm" (see brachio-). Applied to various devices for fastening and tightening on notion of clasping arms. Of dogs, "a couple, a pair" from c.1400.

Word Origin and History for brace (1 of 2)

brace

mid-14c., "to seize, grasp," also "wrap, enshroud; tie up, fetter," from Old French bracier "to embrace," from brace (see brace (n.)). Meaning "to render firm or steady by tensing" is mid-15c., earlier in figurative sense "strengthen or comfort" (someone), early 15c., with later extension to tonics, etc. that "brace" the nerves (cf. bracer "stiff drink"). Related: Braced; bracing.

Medicine definitions for brace

brace

[ brās ]

n.

An orthopedic appliance that supports or holds a movable part of the body in correct position while allowing motion of the part.

Often braces A dental appliance, constructed of bands and wires that is fixed to the teeth to correct irregular alignment.

brace

noun

verb (used with object), braced, brac·ing.