brave
Part of speech: adj
verb
Morphological type: simple
Etymology: From Middle French brave, borrowed from Italian bravo, itself of uncertain origin (see there). Doublet of bravo.
Inflected forms:
form: braver
pos: adj
tags: comparative
form: more brave
pos: adj
tags: comparative
form: bravest
pos: adj
tags: superlative
form: most brave
pos: adj
tags: superlative
form: braves
pos: verb
tags: present
singular
third-person
form: braving
pos: verb
tags: participle
present
form: braved
pos: verb
tags: participle
past
form: braved
pos: verb
tags: past
Senses:
gloss: Strong in the face of fear; courageous.
pos: adj
examples: For miſerie doth braueſt mindes abate, / And make them ſeeke for that they wont to ſcorne, / Of fortune and of hope at once forlorne.
Do not fret, dear. You must be brave and strong, and help me through the horrible task. If you only knew what an effort it is to me to tell of this fearful thing at all, you would understand how much I need your help.
[…]he has been so brave, giving it all a dignity.
Huntingdon's ferocity makes the reaction of staff all the more brave. To move towards danger when others are fleeing is the definition of bravery in my book. To place yourself in danger to protect others.
gloss: Having any sort of superiority or excellence.
pos: adj
tags: obsolete
examples: Is it not paſſing braue to be a King,
And ride in triumph through Perſepolis?
Iron is a brave commodity where wood aboundeth.
It being a brave day, I walked to Whitehall.
gloss: Making a fine show or display.
pos: adj
examples: Their plumed helmes are wrought with beaten golde,
Their ſwords enameld, and about their neckes
Hangs maſſie chaines of golde downe to the waſte,
In euery part exceding braue and rich.
Wear my dagger with the braver grace.
For I have gold, and therefore will be brave. / In silks I'll rattle it of every color.
Frog and lizard in holiday coats / And turtle brave in his golden spots.
So this was my future home, I thought! Certainly it made a brave picture. I had seen similar ones fired-in on many a Heidelberg stein. Backed by towering hills,[…]a sky of palest Gobelin flecked with fat, fleecy little clouds, it in truth looked a dear little city; the city of one's dreams.
gloss: Foolish or unwise.
pos: adj
tags: UK
euphemistic
gloss: To encounter or withstand with courage and fortitude, to defy, to provoke.
pos: verb
tags: transitive
examples: For Cassius is aweary of the world;
Hated by one he loves; braved by his brother;
Checked like a bondman; all his faults observed,
Set in a notebook, learned, and conned by rote,
To cast into my teeth.
The ills of Love, not those of Fate, I fear,
These I can brave, but those I cannot bear […]
[…] but they [Parliament] never will be braved into it.
After braving tricks on the high-dive, he braved a jump off the first diving platform.
He braved the storm and spent the night outside. In the morning, he braved his parents' wrath.
gloss: To adorn; to make fine or showy.
pos: verb
tags: obsolete
transitive
examples: Face not me. Thou hast braved many men; brave
not me. I will neither be faced nor braved.
Synonyms: adventurous
mettlesome
aweless
bad
bold
brass-balled
chivalrous
courageous
daredevil
daring
dauntless
doughty
fearless
fortitudinous
gallant
gutsy
heroic
intrepid
lionhearted
orped
plucky
stalwart
stalworth
stouthearted
unafraid
undaunted
valiant
valorous
venturesome
Antonyms: afraid
cowardly
cautious
fearful
frightened
meek
shy
timid
uncourageous
unhearty
Related words: bravo
bravura
badass
coward
courage
hero
bravado
bravery
Derived words: brave as a lion
braveheart
bravehood
bravely
braven
braveness
brave new world
bravesome
bravity
embrave
fortune favors the brave
fortune favours the brave
overbrave
put a brave face on
put on a brave face
stunning and brave
superbrave
unbrave
brave out
braver
outbrave
Translations: