brew
Americanverb (used with object)
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to make (beer, ale, etc.) by steeping, boiling, and fermenting malt and hops.
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to make or prepare (a beverage, as tea) by mixing, steeping, soaking, or boiling a solid in water.
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to concoct, mix, or cook (a beverage or food, especially one containing unmeasured or unusual ingredients).
She brewed a pot of soup from the leftovers.
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to contrive, plan, or bring about.
to brew mischief.
verb (used without object)
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to make a fermented alcoholic malt beverage, as beer or ale.
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to boil, steep, soak, or cook.
Wait until the tea brews.
noun
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a quantity brewed in a single process.
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a particular brewing or variety of malt liquor.
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a hot beverage made by cooking a solid in water, especially tea or coffee.
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any concoction, especially a liquid produced by a mixture of unusual ingredients.
a witches' brew.
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Informal.
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beer or ale.
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an individual serving of beer or ale.
Let's have a few brews after the game.
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idioms
verb
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to make (beer, ale, etc) from malt and other ingredients by steeping, boiling, and fermentation
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to prepare (a drink, such as tea) by boiling or infusing
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(tr) to devise or plan
to brew a plot
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(intr) to be in the process of being brewed
the tea was brewing in the pot
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(intr) to be impending or forming
there's a storm brewing
noun
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a beverage produced by brewing, esp tea or beer
a strong brew
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an instance or time of brewing
last year's brew
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a mixture
an eclectic brew of mysticism and political discontent
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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brewernoun
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rebrewverb
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misbrewverb (used with object)
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underbrewverb (used with object)
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unbrewedadjective
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well-brewedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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brewsimple
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brewssimple
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have brewedperfect
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has brewedperfect
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am brewingprogressive
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are brewingprogressive
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is brewingprogressive
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have been brewingperfect progressive
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has been brewingperfect progressive
Past
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brewedsimple
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had brewedperfect
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was brewingprogressive
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were brewingprogressive
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had been brewingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of brew
before 900; Middle English brewen, Old English brēowan; akin to Dutch brouwen, German brauen, Old Norse brugga
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.
See Examples For:
AB InBev’s nonalcoholic Corona Cero was the Olympic Games’ first beer sponsor at this year’s Winter Games, where the athletes’ village included a Corona lounge offering yoga and relaxation sessions along with the brew.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 6, 2026
"We just started this back in the day, as a hobby... we kind of want to grow organically," said brew group member Sasan Oskouei, a visual artist.
From Barron's ● May 2, 2026
There was no programme or ticket to show for the trip and no half-time brew but the exit was memorable.
From BBC ● Apr. 7, 2026
I always get the Andante, a cold brew with maple syrup, salted sweet cream foam, cacao powder and pink salt.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 3, 2026
But, if the cure could really cheat death, Piper wanted to brew a six-pack - one dose for each of her friends.
From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan
Smaller brews are taking on new life now, as many drinkers cut back on their spending and alcohol consumption.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026
Making their early brews from cobbled together kit in Martin's mum's garage, and then in a small industrial unit in Fraserburgh, they were undeterred by the early rejections they faced.
From BBC ● Mar. 6, 2026
It just sort of brews up inside of you.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 22, 2026
Tuck that bag of granola alongside a “slow morning” playlist, meant to be played while the coffee brews and the day hasn’t quite started yet.
From Salon ● Dec. 23, 2025
“If you practice this summer with Coach and Drew, you’ll be good enough,” Marcus said as he aimed for one of Todd’s brews.
From "Here to Stay" by Sara Farizan
"Back in the early nineties, we brewed three beers, a mild, a bitter and Old Hooky," he said.
From BBC ● May 25, 2026
Freshly brewed coffee made from whole beans may contain very different caffeine levels compared to instant coffee, and preparation methods can also affect cholesterol levels.
From Science Daily ● May 13, 2026
Summer blend gas is more expensive, brewed to keep down higher summertime pollution.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 26, 2026
Spindrift recently launched a line of noncarbonated iced teas made with brewed tea and squeezed fruit.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 11, 2026
Tea it might as well be called; brewed from roasted permgrain, orsh is a brown, sweetsour drink, strong in vitamins A and C, sugar, and a pleasant stimulant related to lobeline.
From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin
Karp’s I’m-mad-as-hell-and-I’m-not-going-to-take-it-anymore moment is perhaps the best illustration yet of the battle brewing between the tech establishment and the AI upstarts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026
Alessi added that a brewing "super" El Nino in the equatorial Pacific could also be influencing the heat dome.
From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026
Humphrey Smith, the owner of the Samuel Smith's brewing and pub business, has died aged 81, it has been confirmed.
From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026
Erica Sandberg, a consumer advocate for Cardrates, said she can already see this sort of thing brewing in her own family.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026
Barack could happily end a day in a faraway hotel with all sorts of political battles brewing and loose ends floating.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
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.
