brume
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of brume
1800–10; < French: fog < Provençal bruma < Latin brūma winter, originally winter solstice, contraction of *brevima ( diēs ) shortest (day); see breve
Explanation
A brume is a thick mist or fog. Plans for an autumn hike to see the colorful leaves may be thwarted if a brume rolls in, obscuring the view. The word brume is often used in poetic or literary contexts. It is borrowed from French, where it has the same meaning of "fog or mist," but its Latin root, bruma, means "winter." The connection between winter and fog makes sense, as brumes are most common in winter, or as winter approaches, especially in coastal areas, river valleys, and low-lying regions. As colder, wintry air moves in, it sinks and condenses, creating a thick fog.
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.
By 10 a.m., an early morning brume had burned off.
From New York Times • Nov. 1, 2022
The sublime glassy Radnor Lake pulls in photographers from around mid-Tennessee who often arrive early enough to shoot the morning brume that rises from the lake.
From New York Times • Oct. 2, 2020
The resulting brume confounds debate and makes it hard to say whether any seeming rise in hate crimes might be genuine.
From Slate • Nov. 14, 2018
The asphalt gave way to a dirt road through a rain forest, its canopy wreathed in brume.
From The New Yorker • Mar. 14, 2016
Over all hangs the cold brume of char, drifting across the water, lying still upon the decks of ships.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
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.
