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brethren

American  
[breth-rin] / ˈbrɛð rɪn /

plural noun

  1. fellow members.

  2. Archaic. brothers.

brethren British  
/ ˈbrɛðrɪn /

plural noun

  1. archaic a plural of brother

  2. fellow members of a religion, sect, society, etc

"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

Related Words

See brother.

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.

Our chickens, on the other hand, are treated abominably, packed in tightly with their germy brethren, raised in squalor, pumped with hormones, and only made clean at the end.

From Slate • Feb. 13, 2026

Even as its Big Tech brethren collect AI equipment, Apple is sticking to its rather asset-light ways.

From Barron's • Oct. 31, 2025

The league, as leagues do, will maintain this is still an emerging business that cannot approach the finances of the NBA and its brethren.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 8, 2025

Thanks to AI, remote work and flexible work arrangements, many older, non-ESG compliant office buildings have fewer tenants, unlike their Class A brethren.

From Salon • Jan. 7, 2025

I left my brethren rapt in conversation regarding what this mark of special notice might signify.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson

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.