bracing
Americanadjective
-
strengthening; invigorating.
This mountain air is bracing.
-
of, relating to, or serving as a brace.
adjective
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of bracing
First recorded in 1475–85; brace + -ing 1 for the noun senses; brace + -ing 2 for the adjective senses
Explanation
Anything bracing is brisk and refreshing. A Mainer might consider a January swim in the Atlantic Ocean to be bracing, while her Floridian best friend may think she's crazy. You probably enjoy the bracing sea air when you're on a sailboat, or the bracing hike you take up the side of a mountain. In both cases, you're filled with energy and feel fortified by the experience. The adjective bracing comes from the verb brace and its figurative meaning, "to strengthen or comfort."
Vocabulary lists containing bracing
Wintry Words
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"The Witches" by Roald Dahl, Chapters 1–5
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Scythe
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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.
Options traders are bracing for a very busy week, with June ‘triple witching’ and launch of SpaceX contracts on deck.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 16, 2026
The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services has joined a chorus of California hospitals and health systems lobbying the state for a $500-million emergency payment to public hospitals bracing for massive financial losses.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 12, 2026
Although results largely met expectations, they avoided the worst-case scenarios some investors might have been bracing for.
From Barron's • Jun. 10, 2026
The result is bright, bracing and deeply satisfying — the sort of meal that tastes like it should cost considerably more than it did.
From Salon • Jun. 9, 2026
The world was a fresh and wonderful place to me, green and bracing and entirely new, and I looked at it now with fresh new eyes.
From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt
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.
