brackish

[brak-ish]

See more synonyms for brackish on Thesaurus.com

adjective

having a slightly salty or briny flavor.
distasteful; unpleasant.

Origin of brackish

1530–40; < Dutch brak salty + -ish¹

Related formsbrack·ish·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for brackish

briny, saline, salty, salted, saltish

Examples from the Web for brackish

Contemporary Examples of brackish

A brackish breeze blew off the Black Sea, mixing with rotting garbage, human sweat, cheap cleaning products, and undefined fumes.
Great Weekend Reads
The Daily Beast
March 5, 2011

Historical Examples of brackish

Its water is brackish; that of the Nile is good and pleasant.
An Account of Timbuctoo and Housa Territories in the Interior of Africa
Abd Salam Shabeeny
The solution of a base has a soapy feel and a brackish taste.
An Elementary Study of Chemistry
William McPherson
It was fresh water, undoubtedly; very cold, and not in the least brackish.
Major Vigoureux
A. T. Quiller-Couch
They all found the water deep and brackish, and the current very slow.
The Adventures of the Chevalier De La Salle and His Companions, in Their Explorations of the Prairies, Forests, Lakes, and Rivers, of the New World, and Their Interviews with the Savage Tribes, Two Hundred Years Ago
John S. C. Abbott
And so, you see, she lies there dying in the brackish water.
The Lady From The Sea
Henrik Ibsen

British Dictionary definitions for brackish

brackish

adjective

(of water) slightly briny or salty

Derived Formsbrackishness, noun

Word Origin for brackish

C16: from Middle Dutch brac salty; see -ish

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 brackish

adj.

1530s, from Scottish brack "salty" (see brack) + -ish. Related: Brackishness.

brackish in Science

brackish

[brăk′ĭsh]

Containing a mixture of seawater and fresh water. Brackish water is somewhat salty.