Brief Meaning
/ˈbɹiːf/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
adjOf short duration; happening quickly.
adjConcise; taking few words.
Sentence Examples
In brief, you should have accepted the responsibility.
After a brief peace, war broke out again.
This is a brief outline of the events.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
CEFR Practice Quiz
The CEO gave a ____ update that lasted only two minutes.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
She gave a ____ summary of the report during the morning meeting city.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English breef, breve, bref, from Old French brief, bref, from Latin brevis (“short”), from Proto-Indo-European *mréǵʰus (“short, brief”). Doublet of breve and merry.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Some, how briefe the Life of man / runs his erring pilgrimage, / That the ſtretching of a ſpan, / buckles in his ſumme of age."
— c. 1598–1600 (date written), William Shakespeare, “As You Like It”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii]:
"It was a joy to snatch some brief respite, and find himself in the rectory drawing–room. Listening here was as pleasant as talking; just to watch was pleasant. The young priests who lived here wore cassocks and birettas; their faces were fine and mild, yet really strong, like the rector's face; and in their intercourse with him and his wife they seemed to be brothers."
— 1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter X, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
"That brief moment after the election four years ago, when many Americans thought Mr. Obama’s election would presage a new, less fractious political era, now seems very much a thing of the past."
— 2012 November 7, Matt Bai, “Winning a Second Term, Obama Will Confront Familiar Headwinds”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 03 Jun 2020:
"The briefe ſtyle is that which expreſſeth much in little."
— a. 1637, Ben Jonson, “Discoveries”, in The Works of Ben Jonson, volume 2, London: Richard Bishop, published 1641:
"She was like a Beardsley Salome, he had said. And indeed she had the narrow eyes and the high cheekbone of that creature, and as nearly the sinuosity as is compatible with human symmetry. His wooing had been brief but incisive."
— 1921, Ben Travers, chapter 1, in A Cuckoo in the Nest, Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Page & Company, published 1925, →OCLC:
Explore More B1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The CEO gave a ____ update that lasted only two minutes.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
She gave a ____ summary of the report during the morning meeting city.