brace

Plural: braces

Noun

• a support that steadies or strengthens something else
  • "he wore a brace on his knee"
• two items of the same kind
• a set of two similar things considered as a unit
• either of two punctuation marks ({ or }) used to enclose textual material
• a rope on a square-rigged ship that is used to swing a yard about and secure it
• elastic straps that hold trousers up (usually used in the plural)
• an appliance that corrects dental irregularities
• a carpenter's tool having a crank handle for turning and a socket to hold a bit for boring
• a structural member used to stiffen a framework
• Armor for the arm; vambrace.
• A measurement of length, originally representing a person's outstretched arms.
• A curved instrument or handle of iron or wood, for holding and turning bits, etc.; a bitstock.
• That which holds anything tightly or supports it firmly; a bandage or a prop.
• A cord, ligament, or rod, for producing or maintaining tension.
• A thong used to regulate the tension of a drum.
• The state of being braced or tight; tension.
• Harness; warlike preparation.
• A curved, pointed line, also known as "curly bracket": { or } connecting two or more words or lines, which are to be considered together, such as in {role, roll}; in music, used to connect staves.
• A pair, a couple; originally used of dogs, and later of animals generally (e.g., a brace of conies) and then other things, but rarely human persons. (In British use (as plural), this is a particularly common reference to game birds.)
• A piece of material used to transmit, or change the direction of, weight or pressure; any one of the pieces, in a frame or truss, which divide the structure into triangular parts. It may act as a tie, or as a strut, and serves to prevent distortion of the structure, and transverse strains in its members. A boiler brace is a diagonal stay, connecting the head with the shell.
• A rope reeved through a block at the end of a yard, by which the yard is moved horizontally; also, a rudder gudgeon.
• The mouth of a shaft.
• Straps or bands to sustain trousers; suspenders.
• A system of wires, brackets, and elastic bands used to correct crooked teeth or to reduce overbite.
• Two goals scored by one player in a game.
• Two wickets taken with two consecutive deliveries.

Verb

Verb Forms: braced, bracing, braces

• To prepare for impact, or to secure and support something.
• prepare (oneself) for something unpleasant or difficult
• support or hold steady and make steadfast, with or as if with a brace
  • "brace your elbows while working on the potter's wheel"
• support by bracing
• cause to be alert and energetic
• To prepare for something bad, such as an impact or blow.
• To place in a position for resisting pressure; to hold firmly.
• To swing round the yards of a square rigged ship, using braces, to present a more efficient sail surface to the direction of the wind.
• To stop someone for questioning, usually said of police.
• To confront with questions, demands or requests.
• To furnish with braces; to support; to prop.
• To draw tight; to tighten; to put in a state of tension; to strain; to strengthen.
• To bind or tie closely; to fasten tightly.

Examples

• a brace and bit
• All hands, brace for impact!
• Brace yourself!
• He braced himself against the crowd.
• The boy has no idea about everything that's been going on. You need to brace him for what's about to happen.
• to brace a beam in a building
• to brace the nerves
• to brace the yards
• You have to BRACE yourself for the inevitable challenge after a high-scoring Scrabble play.

Synonyms

arouse, bitstock, braces, bracing, couple, couplet, distich, duad, duet, duo, dyad, energise, energize, gallus, orthodontic braces, pair, perk up, poise, span, stabilise, stabilize, steady, stimulate, suspender, twain, twosome, yoke, fathom

Antonyms

de-energise, de-energize, sedate

Related Words

brace aback, brace about, brace abox, brace by, brace in, brace of shakes, brace oneself, brace sharp