bracket

[ brak-it ]

/ ˈbræk ɪt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR bracket ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a support, as of metal or wood, projecting from a wall or the like to hold or bear the weight of a shelf, part of a cornice, etc.

a shelf or shelves so supported.

Also called square bracket. one of two marks [ or ] used in writing or printing to enclose parenthetical matter, interpolations, etc.

Mathematics.

brackets, parentheses of various forms indicating that the enclosed quantity is to be treated as a unit.
(loosely) vinculum(def 2).
Informal. an expression or formula between a pair of brackets.

a grouping of people based on the amount of their income: the low-income bracket.

a class; grouping; classification: She travels in a different social bracket.

Architecture.

any horizontally projecting support for an overhanging weight, as a corbel, cantilever, or console.
any of a series of fancifully shaped false consoles beneath an ornamental cornice.

(on a staircase) an ornamental piece filling the angle between a riser and its tread.

Shipbuilding.

a flat plate, usually triangular with a flange on one edge, used to unite and reinforce the junction between two flat members or surfaces meeting at an angle.
any member for reinforcing the angle between two members or surfaces.

a projecting fixture for gas or electricity.

Gunnery. range or elevation producing both shorts and overs on a target.

verb (used with object)

to furnish with or support by a bracket or brackets.

to place within brackets; couple with a brace.

to associate, mention, or class together: Gossip columnists often bracket them together, so a wedding may be imminent.

Gunnery. to place (shots) both beyond and short of a target.

Photography. to take (additional shots) at exposure levels above and below the estimated correct exposure.

Nearby words

brachyurous, bracing, bracingly, braciola, bracken, bracket, bracket clock, bracket creep, bracket foot, bracket fungi, bracket fungus

Origin of bracket

1570–80; earlier also brag(g)et (in architecture); of obscure origin

Related forms

un·brack·et·ed, adjective

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

Examples from the Web for brackets

The entire process of preplanning and printing the hand, brackets, and cuffs takes just over a day.
3-D Printing Is Changing the Future of Prosthetics|Lucy Vernasco|December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Your cubicle mates pouring over their brackets with all of the serious intent and fevered diligence of Talmudic scholars.
It’s Time to Rip the Money Out of the NCAA|Robert Silverman|April 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
So there you have it, folks, several foolhardy techniques to fill out your brackets and make a run at office immortality.
A Method to March Madness|Ben Teitelbaum|March 20, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Some of it was unnecessary giveaways, like making the Bush tax cuts permanent for most brackets.
A History of Budget Projections in 13 Charts|Megan McArdle|February 5, 2013|DAILY BEAST

Sticking with six brackets is supposedly meant to signal that he believes in a little stability and is not a loon.
Michael Tomasky on Mitt Romney’s Tax-Plan Flim-Flam|Michael Tomasky|February 25, 2012|DAILY BEAST
They may also be used to cover boxes, brackets, and such small articles with very good effect.
Little Folks|Various
The Gothic brackets at the base are rare, and it is an interesting example.
Chats on Cottage and Farmhouse Furniture|Arthur Hayden
Barge-boards and brackets of various cheap patterns are plentifully strewed over the building.
Lippincott's Magazine, Vol. 22, August, 1878|Various
Numbers in brackets refer to the Teubner text of Stich, but the divisions of the text are left unaltered.
Meditations|Marcus Aurelius
The brackets )( show the four possible crossings of the river.
The Old Road|Hilaire Belloc

British Dictionary definitions for brackets

bracket

/ (ˈbrækɪt) /

noun

an L-shaped or other support fixed to a wall to hold a shelf, etc

one or more wall shelves carried on brackets

architect a support projecting from the side of a wall or other structureSee also corbel, ancon, console 2

Also called: square bracket either of a pair of characters, [ ], used to enclose a section of writing or printing to separate it from the main text

a general name for parenthesis, square bracket, brace (def. 6)

a group or category falling within or between certain defined limitsthe lower income bracket

the distance between two preliminary shots of artillery fire in range-finding

a skating figure consisting of two arcs meeting at a point, tracing the shape ⋎

verb -kets, -keting or -keted (tr)

to fix or support by means of a bracket or brackets

to put (written or printed matter) in brackets, esp as being irrelevant, spurious, or bearing a separate relationship of some kind to the rest of the text

to couple or join (two lines of text, etc) with a brace

(often foll by with) to group or class togetherto bracket Marx with the philosophers

to adjust (artillery fire) until the target is hit

Word Origin for bracket

C16: from Old French braguette codpiece, diminutive of bragues breeches, from Old Provençal braga, from Latin brāca breeches

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

Culture definitions for brackets

brackets

Marks — [ ] — resembling parentheses with square corners. Brackets are often used within quotations to distinguish between the quoter's own words and those of the writer being quoted: “He [the president] made a memorable speech at Gettysburg.”

bracket

noun

verb (used with object)

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Nearby words

Origin of bracket

Related forms

Examples from the Web for brackets

British Dictionary definitions for brackets

bracket

noun

verb -kets, -keting or -keted (tr)

Word Origin for bracket

Culture definitions for brackets

brackets