brief
adjective, brief·er, brief·est.
noun
verb (used with object)
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Idioms for brief
Origin of brief
OTHER WORDS FROM brief
Words nearby brief
VOCAB BUILDER
What does brief mean?
Brief is most commonly used as an adjective to mean lasting a short amount of time.
As an adjective, it can also mean concise or said in a few words, as in Keep your introduction brief and get right to the point.
Less commonly, brief can describe an action or interaction as abrupt or too short, often in a rude way, as in Please don’t be so brief with customers.
The adverb form of the adjective brief is briefly, which most commonly means for a short amount of time or concisely.
As a noun, the word brief commonly means a short written item. In a legal context, a brief is a short legal document, such as a written argument submitted to a court or some other short statement of facts for use in a legal case.
Brief can also be used as a verb meaning to provide a short explanation or summary of something to someone, as in Each cabinet member will brief the president on the most important issues. The noun briefing refers to a meeting at which someone is briefed in this way.
Example: The meeting was very brief—it lasted only a few minutes.
Where does brief come from?
The first records of the word brief come from the 1200s. It ultimately comes from the Latin brevis, meaning “short.”
Whether it’s used as an adjective, a noun, or a verb, the word brief always involves things that are short in length or duration. When you tell someone to “keep it brief,” you’re asking them to not take too long—often because there’s not a lot of time. But there’s no set amount of time that makes something brief—it just means appropriately short for the situation. When someone says “I’ll be brief” before speaking, they may have a different idea of what brief means than you do.
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What are some other forms related to brief?
- briefly (adverb)
- briefness (noun)
- briefer (noun)
What are some synonyms for brief?
What are some words that share a root or word element with brief?
What are some words that often get used in discussing brief?
How is brief used in real life?
Brief is a very common word and one of the briefest ways to say, “lasting a short amount of time.”
Barr asks for a brief recess in the hearing. Five minutes.
— Lisa Desjardins (@LisaDNews) July 28, 2020
I got to have a little chat with @mollywood of @Marketplace this morning about our brand new emotional support resource for gaming communities. Be sure to follow @GamesHotline for more info and take a listen to our brief conversation: https://t.co/mXdkviI1AS
— Anita Sarkeesian (@anitasarkeesian) August 3, 2020
Tonight, 2 of 3 candidates were finally given an opportunity to talk abt climate change & clean energy, but it was far too brief. #DemDebate
— Tom Steyer (@TomSteyer) January 18, 2016
Try using brief!
Which of the following words is NOT a synonym of brief?
A. short
B. concise
C. succinct
D. lengthy
Example sentences from the Web for brief
British Dictionary definitions for brief
adjective
noun
verb (tr)
Derived forms of brief
briefly, adverbbriefness, nounWord Origin for brief
Idioms and Phrases with brief
see hold no brief for; in brief.