bric-a-brac

American  

[brik-uh-brak] / ˈbrɪk əˌbræk /

Or bric-à-brac

noun

(used with a singular or plural verb)

1. miscellaneous small articles collected for their antiquarian, sentimental, decorative, or other interest.

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bric-a-brac British  

/ ˈbrɪkəˌbræk /

noun

1. miscellaneous small objects, esp furniture and curios, kept because they are ornamental or rare

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Etymology

Origin of bric-a-brac

1830–40; < French, Middle French: literally, at random, without rhyme or reason; gradational compound from elements of obscure origin

Explanation

Bric-a-brac is knickknacks: little objects without any purpose except decoration. Some people love to collect bric-a-brac. Do you know anyone who collects little unicorn figurines or other small knickknacks? Then you know someone who likes bric-a-brac. Bric-a-brac consists of little odds and ends crafted by artists. This is a mass noun: it's plural without adding an s, standing for all sorts of tawdry trinkets. The nice thing about bric-a-brac is you always have room for more since they’re tiny. An arts and crafts festival is a great place to find all sorts of bric-a-brac.

Example Sentences

As the plot gathers steam and accelerates, Johnson again offers a blunt evisceration of the privileged and powerful, only with fancier cocktails, showier bric-a-brac and gaudier outfits.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 22, 2022

A woman who found two portraits by a 20th Century British artist on a church bric-a-brac stall has described it as her "Fiona Bruce" moment.

From BBC • Aug. 5, 2022

His captivating Teach is the hair-trigger-tempered, cowardly bull in Donny’s cluttered shop — where the characters are as much discards as the bric-a-brac.

From Washington Post • Apr. 14, 2022

Around 2002, he began producing perhaps his best known series: sculptural reliefs of Queen Elizabeth teeming with flea-market bric-a-brac, and plastic flowers and toys.

From New York Times • Apr. 1, 2022

These appear to have been spread about, out of context, like titanic bric-a-brac, in a manner that would have struck the natives as highly irreverent—Egyptianizing instead of Egyptian.

From "Circumference" by Nicholas Nicastro