Bros. Bros. is an abbreviation for brothers . It is usually used as part of the name of a company. [BUSINESS ] □ …Lazard Bros. of New York.
broth /brɒ θ, [AM ] brɔː θ/ (broths ) N‑VAR Broth is a kind of soup. It usually has vegetables or rice in it.
broth|el /brɒ θ ə l/ (brothels ) N‑COUNT A brothel is a building where men can go to pay to have sex with prostitutes.
broth|er ◆◆◆ /brʌ ðə r / (brothers ) The old-fashioned form brethren is still sometimes used as the plural for meanings 3 and 4 . 1 N‑COUNT [oft poss N ] Your brother is a boy or a man who has the same parents as you. □ Oh, so you're Peter's younger brother. □ Have you got any brothers and sisters?
2 → see also half-brother , stepbrother
3 N‑COUNT [usu poss N ] You can describe a man as your brother if he belongs to the same race, religion, country, profession, or trade union as you, or if he has similar ideas to you. □ He told reporters he'd come to be with his Latvian brothers.
4 N‑TITLE ; N‑COUNT Brother is a title given to a man who belongs to a religious community such as a monastery. □ …Brother Otto. □ …the Christian Brothers community which owns the castle.
5 N‑COUNT Brothers is used in the names of some companies and shops. □ …the film company Warner Brothers.
brother|hood /brʌ ðə r hʊd/ (brotherhoods )
1 N‑UNCOUNT Brotherhood is the affection and loyalty that you feel for people with whom you have something in common. □ People threw flowers into the river between the two countries as a symbolic act of brotherhood.
2 N‑COUNT A brotherhood is an organization whose members all have the same political aims and beliefs or the same job or profession. □ …a secret international brotherhood.
bro ther-in-law (brothers-in-law ) N‑COUNT [usu poss N ] Someone's brother-in-law is the brother of their husband or wife, or the man who is married to one of their siblings.
broth|er|ly /brʌ ðə r li/ ADJ [usu ADJ n] A man's brotherly feelings are feelings of love and loyalty which you expect a brother to show. □ …family loyalty and brotherly love. □ He gave her a brief, brotherly kiss.
brought /brɔː t/ Brought is the past tense and past participle of bring .
brou|ha|ha /bruː hɑːhɑː/ N‑SING A brouhaha is an excited and critical fuss or reaction to something. [mainly JOURNALISM , DISAPPROVAL ] □ [+ over ] …the recent brouhaha over a congressional pay raise.
brow /braʊ / (brows )
1 N‑COUNT [usu poss N ] Your brow is your forehead. □ He wiped his brow with the back of his hand.
2 to knit your brow → see knit
3 N‑COUNT [usu pl] Your brows are your eyebrows. □ He had thick brown hair and shaggy brows.
4 N‑COUNT The brow of a hill is the top part of it. □ [+ of ] He was on the look-out just below the brow of the hill.
brow|beat /braʊ biːt/ (browbeats , browbeating , browbeaten ) The form browbeat is used in the present tense and is also the past tense. VERB If someone tries to browbeat you, they try to force you to do what they want. □ [V n] …attempts to deceive, con, or browbeat the voters. □ [V n + into ] When I backed out of the 100 metres, an older kid tried to browbeat me into it. ● brow|beat|en ADJ □ …the browbeaten employees.
brown ◆◆◆ /braʊ n/ (browner , brownest , browns , browning , browned )
1 COLOUR Something that is brown is the colour of earth or of wood. □ …her deep brown eyes. □ The stairs are decorated in golds and earthy browns.
2 ADJ [usu v-link ADJ ] You can describe a white-skinned person as brown when they have been sitting in the sun until their skin has become darker than usual. □ I don't want to be really really brown, just have a nice light golden colour.
3 ADJ [usu ADJ n] Brown is used to describe grains that have not had their outer layers removed, and foods made from these grains. □ …brown bread. □ …spicy tomato sauce served over a bed of brown rice.
4 VERB When food browns or when you brown food, you cook it, usually for a short time on a high flame. □ [V ] Cook for ten minutes until the sugar browns. □ [V n] He browned the chicken in a frying pan.
bro wned o ff ADJ [usu v-link ADJ ] If you say that you are browned off , you mean that you are annoyed and depressed. [mainly BRIT , INFORMAL ] □ Sorry, I'm just thoroughly browned off.
brown|field /braʊ nfiːld/ ADJ [ADJ n] Brownfield land is land in a town or city where houses or factories have been built in the past, but which is not being used at the present time. □ By 2005 he wanted half of all new houses to be built on previously developed land: so-called brownfield sites.
bro wn goods N‑PLURAL Brown goods are electrical appliances such as televisions and audio equipment. Compare white goods . □ Revenue from brown goods, including televisions and hi-fis, rose nearly 12 per cent.
brownie /braʊ ni/ (brownies ) The spelling Brownie is also used for meaning 2 . 1 N‑COUNT [oft n N ] Brownies are small flat biscuits or cakes. They are usually chocolate flavoured and have nuts in them. □ …chocolate brownies. □ …a tray of brownies.
2 N‑PROPER [with sing or pl verb] The Brownies is a junior version of the Girl Guides in Britain for girls between the ages of seven and ten, or of the Girl Scouts in the United States for girls between the ages of six and eight. ● N‑COUNT A Brownie is a girl who is a member of the Brownies.