brew
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to make (beer, ale, etc.) by steeping, boiling, and fermenting malt and hops.
-
to make or prepare (a beverage, as tea) by mixing, steeping, soaking, or boiling a solid in water.
-
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.
-
to contrive, plan, or bring about.
to brew mischief.
verb (used without object)
-
to make a fermented alcoholic malt beverage, as beer or ale.
-
to boil, steep, soak, or cook.
Wait until the tea brews.
noun
-
a quantity brewed in a single process.
-
a particular brewing or variety of malt liquor.
-
a hot beverage made by cooking a solid in water, especially tea or coffee.
-
any concoction, especially a liquid produced by a mixture of unusual ingredients.
a witches' brew.
-
Informal.
-
beer or ale.
-
an individual serving of beer or ale.
Let's have a few brews after the game.
-
idioms
verb
-
to make (beer, ale, etc) from malt and other ingredients by steeping, boiling, and fermentation
-
to prepare (a drink, such as tea) by boiling or infusing
-
(tr) to devise or plan
to brew a plot
-
(intr) to be in the process of being brewed
the tea was brewing in the pot
-
(intr) to be impending or forming
there's a storm brewing
noun
-
a beverage produced by brewing, esp tea or beer
a strong brew
-
an instance or time of brewing
last year's brew
-
a mixture
an eclectic brew of mysticism and political discontent
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
brewernoun
-
rebrewverb
-
misbrewverb (used with object)
-
underbrewverb (used with object)
-
unbrewedadjective
-
well-brewedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
brewsimple
-
brewssimple
-
have brewedperfect
-
has brewedperfect
-
am brewingprogressive
-
are brewingprogressive
-
is brewingprogressive
-
have been brewingperfect progressive
-
has been brewingperfect progressive
Past
-
brewedsimple
-
had brewedperfect
-
was brewingprogressive
-
were brewingprogressive
-
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:
Time will tell how important that brew was.
From BBC ● Apr. 27, 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
The maker of the brew, La Mer, calls it the “Miracle Broth,” the key ingredient in one of the most coveted products in the beauty industry.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 18, 2026
Investors also have been paring bets on the Fed’s ability to lower rates as inflation pressures brew and see just one quarter-point reduction between now and the end of the year.
From Barron's ● Mar. 16, 2026
I reckoned we were going home where she would concoct a brew to eliminate the pain and maybe give me new teeth too.
From "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou
Nick Fink, leader of Modelo maker Constellation Brands, discussed the biggest season for brews and how GLP-1s and affordability are reshaping habits.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026
Blue Bottle, by comparison, is a higher-end brand associated with stylish cafes and relatively expensive brews.
From Barron's ● Jun. 1, 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
He brews a cup of tea and gives me privacy as he shuffles through some proofs.
From "The Adoration of Jenna Fox" by Mary E. Pearson
"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
Strong and sweet, thick and creamy, the drink starts with strong Robusta coffee brewed on a phin, the traditional individual filter that drip-brews directly into a cup.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 17, 2026
And the paints that Osh had so carefully brewed were now splashed across the house in mad streaks, his beautiful clean paper in shreds, the legs of his easel broken.
From "Beyond the Bright Sea" by Lauren Wolk
Unfortunately, a broader conflict seems to be brewing.
From Slate ● Jul. 20, 2026
This doesn’t mean that residents have access to a kind of Megan’s Law list to be able to find out who is brewing what chemistry concoctions in their neighborhoods, though.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 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
But there’s a brewing “knife fight” between them, industry consultant Tim Farrar noted in a recent blog post.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 29, 2026
I smelled hot coffee brewing in the kitchen, and bacon.
From "Missing May" by Cynthia Rylant
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.
