brail
Americannoun
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Nautical. any of several horizontal lines fastened to the edge of a fore-and-aft sail or lateen sail, for gathering in the sail.
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a leather binding for a hawk's wings, to prohibit flight.
verb (used with object)
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Nautical.
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to gather or haul in (a sail) by means of brails (usually followed byup ).
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to transfer (fish) from a net to the hold of a ship.
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to bind (the wings of a bird) in order to prevent it from flying.
noun
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of brail
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
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.
In April, green activist Thomas Brail shot video of more than 70 trees being felled on the city's northern outskirts to make way for Mayor Anne Hidalgo's vision for a "green belt" around the city.
From Reuters • Aug. 5, 2022
But Brail said: "These trees had a role to play."
From Reuters • Aug. 5, 2022
Mr. Brail later staged an 11-day hunger strike in the plane tree near the Eiffel Tower.
From New York Times • Jul. 18, 2022
Professor Brail said it was unclear what impact Lyft’s entry into the local market would have.
From New York Times • Nov. 13, 2017
It was impossible to walk to Brail in the heat of the afternoon—the weather was sultry, even at Rutherford, and Audrey proposed not to start until after an early tea.
From Lover or Friend by Carey, Rosa Nouchette
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.
