brail

[breyl]

noun

1. Nautical.,  any of several horizontal lines fastened to the edge of a fore-and-aft sail or lateen sail, for gathering in the sail.

2. a leather binding for a hawk's wings, to prohibit flight.

verb (used with object)

1. Nautical.

   1. to gather or haul in (a sail) by means of brails (usually followed byup ).

   2. to transfer (fish) from a net to the hold of a ship.

2. to bind (the wings of a bird) in order to prevent it from flying.

brail

/ breɪl /

noun

1. one of several lines fastened to the leech of a fore-and-aft sail to aid in furling it

verb

1. to furl (a fore-and-aft sail) using brails

Other Word Forms

• unbrailed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of brail¹

1400–50; late Middle English, variant of brayell < Anglo-French braiel; Old French < Medieval Latin brācāle breechbelt, noun use of neuter of brācālis, equivalent to Latin brāc ( ae ) trousers (< Gaulish ) + -ālis -al ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of brail¹

C15: from Old French braiel , from Medieval Latin brācāle belt for breeches, from Latin brāca breeches

Example Sentences

In his Monday appearance before the Supreme Court, Khan was granted brail — automatically meaning protection from arrest under Pakistani law — in the June killing of a lawyer Abdul Razzaq in Quetta by unidentified gunmen.

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College Board offered the test in audio format with one strip of brail instead of a full brail page.

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She answered them, and brailed her spanker, and they naturally thought she was preparing to bear up for their rescue.

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To haul up by the brails; Ð used with up; as, to brail up a sail.

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Throat′-brails, those which are attached to the gaff for trussing up the sail close to the gaff as well as the mast.—adj.

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