Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “brace” come from?

brace (Middle English) comes from Old French brace, from Latin bracchia, from Latin bracchium, from Ancient Greek βραχίων, from Ancient Greek βραχύς, from Proto-Indo-European mréǵʰus, from Proto-Indo-European mreǵʰ- — short.

brace (Middle English): Vambrace; armour which protects the arm; A cord...

Definitions

  1. Vambrace; armour which protects the arm; A cord...

Ancestry of “brace”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchbracearm
2Latinbracchianominative plural of bracchium; accusative plural...
3Latinbracchiumforearm; arm; limb of an animal
4Ancient Greekβραχίωνthe arm, the shoulder; comparative degree of...
5Ancient Greekβραχύςshort, brief; short, small, little; few
6Proto-Indo-Europeanmréǵʰusshort; brief
7Proto-Indo-Europeanmreǵʰ-short

Words derived from “brace”

  • brass
  • brace
  • braced
  • bracing
  • braces
  • brassy
  • brasswork
  • bracingly
  • brassie
  • brassware
  • brassbound
  • brassiness
  • thoroughbrace
  • unbrace
  • mainbrace
  • counterbrace
  • brassfounder
  • brassworks
  • brassily
  • rerebrace
  • forebrace
  • crossbracing
  • brassen
  • neckbrace
Every word from Proto-Indo-European mreǵʰ- →