brash

American  

[brash] / bræʃ /

adjective

• brasher,
  comparative
• brashest
  superlative

1. impertinent; impudent; tactless.

   a brash young man.

2. hasty; rash; impetuous.

   Synonyms:

   precipitate, foolhardy, imprudent, overhasty, reckless

   Antonyms:

   careful, prudent, wary, cautious

3. energetic or highly spirited, especially in an irreverent way; zesty.

   a brash new musical.

4. (used especially of wood) brittle.

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noun

1. a pile or stack of loose fragments or debris, as of rocks or hedge clippings.

2. brash ice.

3. Pathology. heartburn.

4. Scot. and North England Dialect.

   1. a sudden shower or burst of rain.

   2. any sudden, minor sickness or indisposition, especially of the digestive tract.

   3. an assault; attack.

brash ¹ British  

/ bræʃ /

adjective

1. tastelessly or offensively loud, showy, or bold

2. hasty; rash

3. impudent

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brash ² British  

/ bræʃ /

noun

1. loose rubbish, such as broken rock, hedge clippings, etc; debris

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brash ³ British  

/ bræʃ /

noun

1. pathol another name for heartburn

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• brashness
  noun
• brashly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Adjectives

• brasher
  comparative
• brashest
  superlative

Etymology

Origin of brash

First recorded in 1400–50; (noun) late Middle English brass(c)he “a slap, crash,” perhaps blend of brok(e) ( Old English broc “breach, fragment, sickness”; akin to break ) and dasch “smashing blow”; see dash ¹; (adjective) in the sense “brittle” is derivative of the noun; in the sense “hasty” by confusion with rash ¹

Explanation

Brash sounds like what it means: harsh, loud, and maybe a little rude. Sometimes that’s good, like when you have a serious rash on your face and give Aunt Nell a brash warning before she showers you with kisses. There's nothing warm and fuzzy about brash. New Yorkers are sometimes thought of as the poster children for brash behavior: they can be bold and brazen. Pushy even. You might find brashness offensive, or maybe you think it's refreshingly direct. If you're a cab driver, a tough exterior might be useful, but being brash probably won’t advance your career if you work in a hotel, where you’re supposed to be polite and welcoming.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

brash brasher brashest

The ‘paradox’ of being both a brash upstart among nations and the oldest continuous democracy.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026

Still, for many of the 200,000 Angelenos who voted for Pratt, his brash, social media-fueled campaign was not just a long exercise in trolling.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 11, 2026

Oversized stars stretched across stone-washed denim might be quintessentially American, but it was bold and brash in a footballing sense and the squad feared they would be ridiculed.

From BBC ● Jun. 1, 2026

Rollins, reflecting on his nearly seven-decade career in the 2016 interview with AFP, said he had perhaps been too brash with the legends around him.

From Barron's ● May 26, 2026

Hearing the normally brash pint-size peashooter so worried made me realize just how much trouble we were in.

From "Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky" by Kwame Mbalia

But her very existence gave a certain kind of young woman a compelling model of how to be a brasher, less apologetic, more feminist person in the world.

From Slate ● Mar. 31, 2026

But recent months have showed a shift away from the brasher campaigning.

From Reuters ● Jul. 7, 2023

If Ebb, with his brasher, needier personality, would have eaten up the honor, Kander seems at best to withstand it, embarrassed by too much attention or praise.

From New York Times ● Apr. 4, 2023

The show was launched in 2002 by presenter Jeremy Clarkson and producer Andy Wilman, envisioned as a brasher version of the earlier and altogether more genteel motoring programme it takes its name from.

From BBC ● Mar. 24, 2023

It was an institution for girls near my house, and the young ladies were faster, brasher, meaner and more prejudiced than any I had met at Lafayette County Training School.

From "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou

The planet’s brashest sport had arrived at what is putatively “The People’s House” to deliver a night of branded mayhem to the head of state, like gladiators bequeathed to an emperor.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 15, 2026

But the brashest experiments in cut-rate flying might subside for years, given shortages of pilots, airport slots, and just about everything else they depend upon.

From Barron's ● May 8, 2026

As a pro wrestler, Drew McIntyre is one of WWE's biggest and brashest villains.

From BBC ● Jan. 31, 2025

Smith was Black, female, new to New York City, with zero art credentials of the kind demanded by any museum of even the brashest up-and-comer, which Smith — a self-described low-key loner — was not.

From New York Times ● Feb. 16, 2023

Having appeared at three Ryder Cups, where he has been one of the brashest characters on the American team, Reed’s decision could see him ineligible for selection in the future.

From Seattle Times ● Jun. 11, 2022

Related Words

• bold
• brazen
• cheeky
• cocky
• rude