bra

bra

1. (international standards) ISO 639-2 & ISO 639-3 language code for Braj.

• brassiere, brassière (dated)

• enPR: brä, IPA^(key): /bɹɑː/, [bɹɐ̞]
• (Ireland, Ottawa Valley) IPA^(key): /bɹæ/

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑː

Clipping of brassiere, borrowed from French brassière, from Old French braciere (originally a lining inside armor to protect the arm, but later a garment), from Old French brace (“arm”), from Latin bracchia, plural of Latin bracchium (“forearm”), from Ancient Greek βραχίων (brakhíōn, “forearm”), from Proto-Hellenic *brəkʰús (“short”) (because the forearm is shorter than the upper arm), inherited from Proto-Indo-European *mréǵʰus.

bra (plural bras)

1. An item of clothing, usually underwear worn to support the breasts. [from 1920s]
   • 1968, Carl Ruhen, The Key Club, Sydney: Scripts, page 12:

     Her housecoat had fallen open. She was wearing only panties and bra, which did nothing to make her scrawny, wrinkled body appealing.

From bracket, referring to the notation introduced in 1939 by Paul Dirac.

bra (plural bras)

1. (physics) One of the two vectors in the standard notation for describing quantum states in quantum mechanics, the row vector; the other (column) vector being its complex conjugate, the ket.

• ket

• bra-ket
• ket-bra

Representing a different pronunciation of bro (“brother”).

bra (plural bras)

1. (slang) Alternative form of bro; friend, mate

   Take it easy, bra!

   • 2009, Todd Johnson, Influence:

     “Famalam, I ain't even gon lie to ya man, I am super happy to be finally maxing out on parole my real. This violation was definitely a reality check Bra!” Influence replied to his comrade.

•   bra on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

• Rab, ABR, bar-, Arb., bar, BAR, ARB, RBA, Bar, arb, abr., Bar.

Borrowed from English bra.

• IPA^(key): /brɑː/

bra (plural bra's)

1. bra, brassiere
2. (Cape Afrikaans) bro, brah, bruh

From English bra, shortened from brassiere, from French brassière.

• Hyphenation: bra

bra

1. a bra; a brassiere

For quotations using this term, see Citations:bra.

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

bra

1. arrow

From French bras (“arm”).

• IPA^(key): /bɣa/

bra

1. arm

bra

1. Romanization of ꦧꦿ

bra

1. dear

• brâs (continental Normandy)
• bras (Jersey, Guernsey)

From Old French bras, from Vulgar Latin *bracium, from Classical Latin bracchium, from Ancient Greek βραχίων (brakhíōn).

bra m (plural bras)

1. (Sark, anatomy) arm

Borrowed from French brave.

• IPA^(key): /bɾɑː/

bra (indeclinable, comparative bedre, indefinite superlative best, definite superlative beste)

1. good, fine

• kjempebra

bra

1. well

• god
• vel

• “bra” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Borrowed from French brave.

bra (indeclinable, comparative betre, indefinite superlative best, definite superlative beste)

1. good, fine

• kjempebra

• god
• vel

• “bra” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Borrowed from Sanskrit वर (vara, “best; excellent; foremost; holy; precious; top; valuable; etc.”) (Doublet of awara (“screen”) and wara (“favour, gift”)). Compare Khmer ព្រះ (prĕəh), Thai พระ (prá).

bra

1. prefix for royalty name

Borrowed from braf (“good, brave”); from Low German brav; from French brave, borrowed from Italian bravo.

bra (comparative mair bra, superlative maist bra)

1. Very good or agreeable.

• guid
• braw

Borrowed from bra, shortened from brassiere.

bra (plural bras)

1. An item of underwear worn to support the breasts.

• bra

Since at least 1621, from braf (“good, brave”); from Low German brav; from French brave, borrowed from Italian bravo.

• IPA^(key): /brɑː/, [brɒ̜ː]

• Audio (Gotland):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑː

bra (comparative bättre, superlative bäst)

1. good (having pleasing or suitable qualities)

   Synonym: (jocular, childish) braig

   en bra film

   a good movie

   – Ska vi måla den blå? – Ja, det blir bra.

   – Should we paint it blue? – Yeah, that'll be good.

   Han är bra på tennis

   He is good at tennis

   Hon är en bra människa

   She is a (morally) good person (see the usage notes below)

2. healthy or recovered (from an illness or injury or the like), well

   Jag är inte riktigt bra i benet än

   My leg hasn't quite recovered yet ("I'm not quite well in the leg yet")

   – Känner du dig bättre idag? – Ja, men inte helt bra.

   – Are you feeling better today? – Yeah, but not completely well.

3. quite large in extent or degree, good, goodly

   Synonym: (often a bit old-fashioned, but idiomatic in some cases where "bra" is not) god

   Det här kommer ta ett bra tag

   This is going to take a good while

   Det är en bra bit att åka

   It's quite a distance to drive

   De tjänade en bra slant

   They made a pretty penny ("made a sizable coin," "tjäna en slant" is idiomatic)

• "Good" as in morally good is more specifically god, but some overlap occurs since someone morally good can also be considered to have good qualities (be considered to be a "good kind of person").
• In informal (often jocular or childish) contexts, bäst may be inflected further and given the comparative bästare (bester) and the superlative bästast, bästaste (bestest); these forms are also nonstandard.

bra (comparative bättre, superlative bäst)

1. well

   Mår du bra?

   Are you feeling well? / Are you okay?

   Han spelade bra idag

   He played well today

2. a good deal, quite (to quite a large extent or degree)

   Rattfylla är bra mycket vanligare bland män

   Drunk driving is a good deal more common among men

   Den där älgen är bra stor!

   That moose is quite the big one!

   Filmen var bra kass

   The movie was quite the stinker

   bra dålig

   substantially bad (literally also "good bad")

• väl
• god

• bra in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• bra in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)

• -bar, bar

Borrowed from English bra.

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ˈbɾa/ [ˈbɾa]
• Rhymes: -a
• Syllabification: bra

bra (Baybayin spelling ᜊ᜔ᜇ)

1. brassiere; bra

   Synonym: (uncommon) salungso

• Abr., bar

• braave

From Middle French brave, borrowed from Italian bravo, itself of uncertain origin. Cognate with Scots braw.

• IPA^(key): /bɾɔː/, /bɾɔːv/

bra

1. brave, pretty well
   • 1867, “A YOLA ZONG”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 6, page 86:

     Many a bra draught by Tommeen was ee-maate;

     Many a brave stroke by Tommy was made;

• Jacob Poole (d. 1827) (before 1828) William Barnes, editor, A Glossary, With some Pieces of Verse, of the old Dialect of the English Colony in the Baronies of Forth and Bargy, County of Wexford, Ireland, London: J. Russell Smith, published 1867, page 27

• bira, bıra

Compare Persian برادر (barâdar).

bra

1. brother