# brake

Pronunciation: say "BRAYK" /bɹeɪk/

## Noun

1. A device that slows or stops the motion of a wheel or vehicle, usually by friction; also the controls used to engage it, such as a car's pedal.
   - Simple: A part that slows or stops a wheel or vehicle, usually by rubbing, or the pedal that works it.
   - _He slammed on the brake when the light turned red._
   - _The mechanic replaced the worn brakes before the long trip._
3. The action of applying a brake to slow down a machine or vehicle.
   - Simple: The act of using a brake to slow down a vehicle or machine.
   - _A gentle brake brought the train smoothly into the station._
   - _Her sudden brake left skid marks on the road._
4. Anything that serves to slow down or stop an action, process, or trend.
   - Simple: Anything that slows down or stops an action or process.
   - _Rising interest rates put a brake on the housing market._
   - _Bureaucracy often acts as a brake on innovation._
6. A large, coarse fern (Pteridium species), commonly known as bracken, that grows in open ground and woodland.
   - Simple: A large, rough fern that grows wild in fields and open woods.
   - _Sheep grazed near the brake on the open moor._
   - _By late summer the brake had turned brown and brittle._
7. A fern of the genus Pteris, a group that includes many ornamental and table ferns.
   - Simple: A type of fern belonging to a group sometimes grown in homes and gardens.
   - _Florists often use brake in mixed foliage arrangements._
   - _A delicate brake unfurled new fronds along the shaded path._
8. A thicket, or an area overgrown with briers, brambles, and other tangled growth.
   - Simple: A thick patch of bushes, briers, or other wild plants.
   - _The fox vanished into a brake of thorns and bramble._
   - _We pushed through the brake to reach the riverbank._
9. A machine used to bend or fold sheet metal along straight lines.
   - Simple: A machine that bends flat sheets of metal into shapes.
   - _The shop bought a new brake to fold ductwork panels._
   - _She clamped the aluminum in the brake before forming the bend._
10. A large, heavy harrow dragged across plowed ground to break up clods of earth; a drag.
   - Simple: A large, heavy farm tool dragged over plowed land to break up lumps of soil.
   - _They pulled the brake across the field to ready the soil for seeding._
   - _An ox team hauled the brake over the freshly plowed acres._
11. A large open carriage used to carry shooting parties and their equipment to the field.
   - Simple: A large carriage used to carry hunting parties and their gear.
   - _The estate's brake clattered down the lane toward the grouse moor._
   - _They loaded guns and game bags onto the brake at dawn._
12. An apparatus for testing the power of an engine or motor by measuring the friction it can overcome; a friction brake.
   - Simple: A device that measures an engine's power by the friction it can overcome.
   - _The lab used a brake to determine the steam engine's output._
   - _Readings from the brake showed that the motor's power had declined._
13. The part of a carriage, such as a movable gun battery or engine, that enables it to turn.
   - Simple: The part of a carriage or engine that lets it turn or change direction.
   - _The crew relied on the brake to wheel the field gun around._
   - _A worn brake made the heavy carriage hard to steer._
14. A pen or enclosure used to hold cattle, horses, or similar animals and keep them still.
   - Simple: A fenced pen that keeps cattle or horses from moving around.
   - _The drovers herded the cattle into the brake for the night._
   - _A wooden brake at the edge of the field kept the bullocks penned._
15. A sturdy frame used to hold an unruly horse in place while a blacksmith shoes it.
   - Simple: A strong frame that holds a difficult horse still while it gets new shoes.
   - _The farrier guided the restless stallion into the brake before lifting its hoof._
   - _A well-built brake let the smith work safely on even the wildest colt._
16. A skeleton cart or carriage without a body, used for training horses to pull.
   - Simple: A simple cart with no body, used to train young horses to pull.
   - _Each morning the groom harnessed an unbroken colt to the brake for its first lesson._
   - _The stable kept a light brake for accustoming young horses to the harness._
17. The lever or handle worked by hand to operate a pump.
   - Simple: The handle you push up and down to work a pump.
   - _Two sailors heaved on the brake to clear the bilge._
   - _She worked the brake steadily until water gushed from the spout._
18. A trough in which a baker kneads and works bread dough.
   - Simple: A large container where a baker mixes and works dough.
   - _Before dawn the baker leaned over the brake, working the heavy dough by hand._
   - _Each batch of bread started in the wooden brake at the back of the shop._
19. A tool used to crush and break the woody stalks of flax or hemp so the fibers can be separated.
   - Simple: A tool that crushes flax or hemp stalks to free the fibers.
   - _Workers fed bundles of retted hemp into the brake to loosen the fiber._
   - _After drying, the flax went to the brake, where its woody stalks were crushed._
22. An ancient war engine similar to a crossbow or ballista, used to hurl projectiles.
   - Simple: An old war machine that shot heavy bolts or stones, like a giant crossbow.
   - _The defenders wheeled a brake onto the rampart and loosed a great bolt at the advancing line._
   - _Ancient armies relied on the brake to batter enemy walls from a distance._
25. An instrument formerly used to inflict pain as torture or punishment.
   - Simple: A device once used to hurt and punish people.
   - _The accused was strapped to the brake until he named his accomplices._
   - _The torturers kept the brake ready in a cold cellar beneath the court._

## Verb

2. To operate a brake or brakes in order to slow down or stop.
   - Simple: To use the brake to slow down or stop.
   - _The driver braked hard to avoid the cyclist._
   - _Always brake before entering a sharp turn._
5. To slow down or come to a stop as though a brake had been applied.
   - Simple: To slow down or stop, as if a brake were being used.
   - _The runaway trolley finally braked against the sandy embankment._
   - _Spacecraft brake using the friction of the atmosphere._
20. To bruise and crush something, or to knead it.
   - Simple: To crush and press something, the way you work soft dough.
   - _The millers brake the seeds to release their oil._
   - _She would brake the boiled roots into a smooth paste._
21. To break up and pulverize soil by dragging a harrow over it.
   - Simple: To break up soil into small bits using a harrow.
   - _Each spring the workers brake the field until the soil runs fine._
   - _A good harrow helps you brake the lumpy earth quickly._

## Noun

23. The winch used to draw back and tension the string of a crossbow. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: The crank that pulls back the string of a crossbow.
   - _The crossbowman cranked the brake until the string locked into the catch._
   - _Without a brake, no soldier could draw so stiff a bow by hand._
24. An enclosure or cage used to confine a person or animal. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: A cage for holding a person or animal.

## Verb

26. Past tense of break. Archaic: the modern form is broke. *(archaic)* — simple past of break
   - Simple: Past tense of break. It is an old word for "broke."

## Origin

**Meanings 1–5, 11–18, 22–23** — The origin is uncertain, but it possibly comes from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German 'brake' ("nose ring, curb, flax brake"), which according to Watkins is related to sense 4 and goes back to Proto-Germanic *brekaną ("to break").
**Meanings 6–7** — It is apparently a shortened form of 'bracken', much as 'chick' relates to 'chicken'.
**Meaning 8** — From Old English *bracu, attested in the plural compound 'fearnbraca' ("thickets of fern"), probably from Proto-Germanic *brekaną ("to break") and influenced by the "fern" sense. Compare Middle Low German 'brake' ("stump, branch").
**Meanings 9–10, 19–21** — Late Middle English, from Middle Low German 'brake', Dutch 'braak', and Old Dutch 'braeke'; possibly related to sense 1.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/brake (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).