broad

¹ American  

[brawd] / brɔd /

adjective

broader, broadest

1. of great breadth.

   The river was too broad to swim across.

   Antonyms:

   narrow

2. measured from side to side.

   The desk was three feet broad.

3. of great extent; large.

   the broad expanse of ocean.

   Synonyms:

   vast, ample, extensive

4. wide-open; full.

   We awoke to broad daylight.

5. not limited or narrow; of extensive range or scope.

   A modern doctor must have a broad knowledge of medicine.

   Synonyms:

   open, wide, extensive

6. liberal; tolerant.

   A broad interpretation of the law tempers justice with mercy.

7. main or general.

   the broad outlines of a subject.

8. plain or clear.

   Her remark was a broad hint of her feelings.

9. outspoken; plain-spoken.

10. indelicate; indecent.

    He smirked at the broad joke.

    Synonyms:

    gross

11. (of conversation) rough; countrified.

12. unconfined; unbridled; unrestrained;

    It was a hilarious evening of broad mirth.

13. (of pronunciation) strongly dialectal.

    He wore kilts and had a broad Scots accent.

14. Phonetics. (of a transcription) using one basic symbol to represent each phoneme.

15. broad a, the a- sound when used in lieu of the more common a- sound in such words as half, can't, and laugh.

---

adverb

1. fully.

   He was broad awake.

noun

1. the broad part of anything.

2. Slang.

   1. Usually Offensive. a term used to refer to a woman.

   2. a promiscuous woman.

3. Movies, Television. Often broads. an incandescent or fluorescent lamp used as a general source of light in a studio.

4. a gold coin of England and Scotland, issued by James I and Charles I and equal to 20 shillings.

idioms

1. broad on the quarter, bearing 135° to the heading of a vessel.

2. broad on the bow, bearing 45° to the heading of a vessel.

3. broad on the beam, bearing 90° to the heading of a vessel.

Broad ² American  

[brawd] / brɔd /

noun

1. C(harlie) D(unbar), 1887–1971, English philosopher.

---

broad British  

/ brɔːd /

adjective

1. having relatively great breadth or width

2. of vast extent; spacious

   a broad plain

3. (postpositive) from one side to the other

   four miles broad

4. of great scope or potential

   that invention had broad applications

5. not detailed; general

   broad plans

6. clear and open; full (esp in the phrase broad daylight )

7. obvious or plain

   broad hints

8. liberal; tolerant

   a broad political stance

9. widely spread; extensive

   broad support

10. outspoken or bold

    a broad manner

11. vulgar; coarse; indecent

    a broad joke

12. unrestrained; free

    broad laughter

13. (of a dialect or pronunciation) consisting of a large number of speech sounds characteristic of a particular geographical area

    a broad Yorkshire accent

14. finance denoting an assessment of liquidity as including notes and coin in circulation with the public, banks' till money and balances, most private-sector bank deposits, and sterling bank-deposit certificates Compare narrow

    broad money

15. phonetics

    1. of or relating to a type of pronunciation transcription in which symbols correspond approximately to phonemes without taking account of allophonic variations

    2. the long vowel in English words such as father , half , as represented in the received pronunciation of Southern British English

16. amounting to the same thing; without advantage either way

---

noun

1. the broad part of something

2. slang

   1. a girl or woman

   2. a prostitute

3. dialect a river spreading over a lowland See also Broads

4. dialect a shallow lake

5. a wood-turning tool used for shaping the insides and bottoms of cylinders

adverb

1. widely or fully

   broad awake

broad More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing broad

• can't hit the broad side of a barn

---

Sensitive Note

When used to refer to a woman, broad is usually perceived as insulting. The meaning “promiscuous woman” is probably the earlier sense.

Related Words

See wide.

Other Word Forms

• broadish adjective
• broadly adverb
• broadness noun
• overbroad adjective

Etymology

Origin of broad

First recorded before 1000; Middle English bro(a)d, Old English brād; cognate with Dutch breed, German breit, Old Norse breithr, Gothic braiths

Explanation

The adjective broad boasts an extensive — you might even say broad — array of subtly different meanings including wide, spacious, far-reaching, vague, and unsubtle. It's kind of funny that the word broad can communicate such an expansive range of ideas since expansive is, in fact, a synonym for broad. This adjective can be used to describe actual physical spaces. A broad highway, for example, would be difficult to cross because of all the cars in the many lanes of the road. The word can also be used more figuratively. American history covers a broad range of topics and events. A broad-minded person is open to new ideas, while broad humor aims for a mass audience with obvious gags and stunts.

Example Sentences

“It needs to result in economic growth that is broad spread in the economy.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 11, 2026

Harris used the platform to launch a broad critique of Trump's leadership, telling the crowd: "The status quo is not working, and hasn't been working for a lot of people for a long time."

From Barron's • Apr. 10, 2026

Some experts like Dan Solin, the author of “Wealthier: The Investing Field Guide for Millennials,” among many other books, recommend having just two funds — a broad stock-market index fund and a bond fund.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 10, 2026

Other astrophysical factors could influence what is observed, meaning scientists will need to compare this model with a broad range of data.

From Science Daily • Apr. 10, 2026

They wore broad smiles, and Masvita hurried off to the stream.

From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer

Related Words

• comprehensive
• expansive
• extensive
• far-reaching
• sweeping
• universal
• wide
• wide-ranging