breve

American  

[breev, brev] / briv, brɛv /

noun

1. Phonetics, Orthography. a diacritic (˘) over a vowel to show that it is short, or to indicate a specific pronunciation, as ŭ in (kŭt) cut.

2. Law.

   1. an initial writ.

   2. a writ, as one issued by a court of law.

3. Music.

   1. the longest modern note, equivalent to two semibreves or whole notes.

   2. Also brevis a note in medieval mensural notation equal to one-half or one-third of a longa.

4. Prosody. a mark ( ˘ ) over a syllable to show that it is not stressed.

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breve British  

/ briːv /

noun

1. an accent, (˘), placed over a vowel to indicate that it is of short duration or is pronounced in a specified way

2. music a note, now rarely used, equivalent in time value to two semibreves

3. RC Church a less common word for brief

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Etymology

Origin of breve

1250–1300; Middle English < Medieval Latin, Latin breve, neuter of brevis short; brief

Example Sentences

One in particular, called B. breve, could help babies make the most of nutrients in breast milk and ward off bugs, preliminary tests suggest.

From BBC • Sep. 6, 2024

Los grupos tocaban primero una breve melodía de apertura, llamada tema, que presentaba a su equipo, y luego una canción más larga que destacaba su destreza técnica y presentaba los solos de cada sección instrumental.

From New York Times • Nov. 5, 2022

A finales de mayo, Ávila Arcos recibió un breve comunicado del Órgano Interno de Control del Cinvestav, la unidad que desde 2020 investiga los casos de acoso sexual.

From Science Magazine • Oct. 5, 2021

Por un breve y fugaz momento estuve por encima de las 100 libras.

From Los Angeles Times • May 21, 2021

La santit� di N. S. Gregorio Papa XVI. con breve in data 17 Sept.

From Walks in Rome by Hare, Augustus J. C.