brother
Americannoun
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brothers,
plural
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brethren
plural (Archaic)
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a male offspring having both parents in common with another offspring; a male sibling.
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Also called half brother. a male offspring having only one parent in common with another offspring.
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a stepbrother.
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a male numbered among the same kinship group, nationality, ethnicity, profession, etc., as another; an associate; a fellow member, fellow countryman, fellow man, etc..
a fraternity brother.
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Ecclesiastical.
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(often initial capital letter) a male numbered among the lay members of a religious organization that has a priesthood.
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a man who devotes himself to the duties of a religious order without taking holy orders, or while preparing for holy orders.
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brothers, all members of a particular racial or ethnic group, or of the human race in general.
All men are brothers.
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Brother, can you spare a dime?
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Informal. a term used to refer to or address a fellow Black man; soul brother.
interjection
noun
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a male person having the same parents as another person
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short for half-brother stepbrother
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a male person belonging to the same group, profession, nationality, trade union, etc, as another or others; fellow member
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( as modifier )
brother workers
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comrade; friend: used as a form of address
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Christianity
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a member of a male religious order who undertakes work for the order without actually being in holy orders
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a lay member of a male religious order
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interjection
Synonym Usage
Brothers, brethren are plurals of brother. Brothers are kinsmen, sons of the same parents: My mother lives with my brothers. Brethren, now archaic in the foregoing sense, is used of male members of a congregation or of a fraternal organization: The brethren will meet at the church.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of brother
First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English brōthor; cognate with Dutch broeder, German Bruder, Old Norse brōthir, Gothic brothar, Sanskrit bhrātṛ, Greek phrā́tēr, Latin frāter, Old Irish bráthair, Old Church Slavonic bratrŭ
Vocabulary lists containing brother
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:
As for his other family members, brother Prince William and father King Charles III, Prince Harry said, “I want it to work out.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 21, 2026
The Duke of Sussex has said he wants to repair his complicated relationships with his father and brother, in a magazine interview.
From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2026
On Tuesday, her campaign put out a statement from Philip Stearns, Acton’s brother, corroborating her account of abuse and implying that Ramaswamy was behind the ad.
From Slate ● Oct. 20, 2026
The 21-year-old will move to Brasilia in February, leaving behind the family home she shares with her mother, grandmother and younger brother.
From Barron's ● Oct. 19, 2026
Aunt J has the same rich, dark complexion her brother has.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
Historically, when this gap has been in the top quintile, it’s led to an average 7.5% outperformance over the following year for higher-quality stocks over their lower-quality brethren.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 19, 2026
After bidding a hearty olé to my literary brethren, I reach Café Gijón, outside the bounds of Las Letras, but not its spirit.
From Salon ● Jun. 23, 2026
Although many crashed or collided with robot brethren, Lightning avoided a serious mishap and crossed the finish line in 50 minutes, 26 seconds.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 20, 2026
Our chickens, on the other hand, are treated abominably, packed in tightly with their germy brethren, raised in squalor, pumped with hormones, and only made clean at the end.
From Slate ● Feb. 13, 2026
“The envy and hatred of my brethren has lately risen to a rage,” Rush explained.
From "An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793" by Jim Murphy
"It's a great sense of comfort, to particularly my mother and to myself and my two brothers, because the state is officially owning up to the errors and the missions that happened," he said.
From BBC ● Oct. 21, 2026
Graham Jr. and Jeffrey, my two older brothers, and I got along great.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026
The following year, on March 25, 1967, the brothers opened the Brockman Gallery on 4334 Degnan Blvd.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 19, 2026
The brothers declined to give any details about what their next joint project would be, but it is unlikely to be fantasy-based.
From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026
Calling Greeley, “the self appointed Attorney General for the hobgoblin society,” the Burr brothers set out to expose spirit communication as a fraud and tell the public the truth about the Fox sisters.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
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