brackish
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brack·ish /'brækɪ/ adj (of water) not pure; a little salty
—ness n [U]
Brack·nell, Lady /'bræknəl/ a character in Oscar Wilde's
play THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST, remembered espe-
cially for using the phrase 'A handbag?', said with great
surprise
brad /bræd/ n AmE a small metal object like a button with two
metal sticks, used to hold several pieces of paper together
brad·awl /'brædɔːl/ n a small tool with a sharp point for
making holes
Brad·bu·ry, Ray /'brædbərɪl-beri, -bəri/ (1920–) an Ameri-
can writer of SCIENCE FICTION whose stories include Fahrenheit
451 and The Halloween Tree
Brad·ford /'brædfɔːd/ an industrial city in the north
of England which is a centre of the woollen industry and
where many Asian people now live
Bradford, Bar·ba·ra Tay·lor /'ba:bərə 'teɪlər||'baɪər-/
(1933–) a British writer of popular NOVELS novels, many of
which have been made into television films. Her stories,
which are read especially by women, are often about strong
intelligent women who work hard to succeed in a world
where men have most of the power.
Brad·ley, Bill /'brædli/ (1943–) a US Democratic politician
who was a senator for New Jersey from 1979 to 1997. Before
he became a politician, he was famous as a basketball player
who played for the New York Knicks, and he is in the
Basketball Hall of Fame.
Brad·man, Sir Don·ald /'brædmən, 'dɒnəld||'dɑː-/ (1908–
2001) an Australian cricketer, one of the best batsmen (BATS-
MAN) ever to have played
Brad·shaw /'brædʃɔː/ n the railway TIMETABLE (=book with
lists showing the times of train services) which was used in
the UK from the 19th century until the middle of the 20th
century
Bradshaw, Ter·ry /'teri/ (1948–) a US FOOTBALL player who
was a famous QUARTERBACK for the Pittsburgh Steelers team
in the 1970s and helped them win four SUPER BOWLS
Brady, Ian → see MOORS MURDERERS
Bra·dy Bunch, The /'breɪdi ˌbʌntʃ/ a US television pro-
gramme of the 1960s and 1970s about a large happy family
CULTURAL NOTE Some people talk about the Brady Bunch
as an example of a family that is good and so free from
real problems that they could not possibly really exist: The
family across the street seemed like the Brady Bunch at
first, but we soon learned that there were all sorts of
tensions underneath.
brae /breɪ/ n ScotE a hillside; slope
brag /bræg/ v -gg- [I(about, of);T+that, obj] derog to talk too
proudly about yourself, your possessions etc; BOAST: Don't
brag! | She bragged about her connections in the film world.
Bra·ga, Son·ia /'bra:gə, 'sɒnjə||'sɑ:n-/ (1951–) an American
actress, born in Brazil, who has performed in films and
television programmes. She is known for appearing in the
film Kiss of the Spider Woman and in the television pro-
gramme Sex and the City.
Bragg, Mel·vyn /bræg, 'melvɪn/ (1939–) a British writer and
PRESENTER of television and radio programmes about art,
music, literature, films etc, including a well-known pro-
gramme called The South Bank Show. His official title is Lord
Bragg, and he represents the Labour Party in the House of
Lords.
brag·ga·do·cio /ˌbrægə'dəʊtʃɪəʊl-ˌsɪəʊ/ n [U especially lit or
humor] noisy bragging
brag·gart /'brægətl-ərt/ n old-fash someone who is always
talking too proudly about what they own or have done
Brah·ma /'bra:mə/ one of the three main gods in the Hindu
religion, who is considered to be the god of CREATION → see
also SHIVA, VISHNU
Brah·min /'bra:mɪn/ also Brah·man /'bra:mən/ n a Hindu
who belongs to the rank of priest or teacher in the Indian
CASTE system
Brahms, Jo·han·nes /bra:mz, jəu'hænəs/ (1833–97) a Ger-
man writer of music known for his symphonies (SYMPHONY)
and CONCERTOS
braid¹ /breɪd/ especially AmE || plait especially BrE —v [T] to twist
together three or more lengths of (hair, thread etc) to form
one ropelike length
braid² n 1 [U] threads of silk, gold etc, twisted to form a
narrow decorative border for material: gold braid for a naval
officer's uniform 2 [C often pl.] especially AmE || plait especially BrE
— a length of hair formed by twisting together three or
more lengths
braille /breɪl/ n [U] (sometimes cap.) a form of printing with
raised round marks which blind people can read by touch-
ing
brain¹ /breɪn/ n 1 [C] the organ of the body in the upper
part of the head, which controls thought, feeling, and
physical activity: The brain is the centre of higher nervous
activity. | He suffered severe brain damage as a result of the
accident. 2 [C;U] also brains pl. — the ability to think clearly,
quickly, and well; INTELLIGENCE: a good brain | She's certainly
got a brain/plenty of brains. | He hasn't got much (of a)
brain. | It takes brains to think of something like that! 3 [C]
also brains pl. — infml a person with a very good mind: Some
of the best brains in the country are working on this project. |
His partner was the brains behind the venture. 4 have
something on the brain infml to think about something
continually: I've got that song on the brain today. | He seems
to have sex on the brain! 5 -brained /breɪnd/ having a brain
of the stated type: bird-brained (=silly) | scatterbrained
(=careless and unthinking) → see also beat one's brains out
(BEAT¹), blow someone's brains out (BLOW¹), rack one's
brains (RACK²)
brain² v [T] infml to hit (someone) very hard on the head,
especially so as to break their SKULL
brain·child /'breɪntʃaɪld/ n [S] infml someone's idea or
invention, especially if successful: This festival was the
brainchild of the local mayor.
'brain damage n [U] any INJURY or damage to the brain,
which may be either temporary or permanent: She suffered
brain damage in the car crash. | irreversible brain damage
—brain-damaged adj: severely brain-damaged | born brain-
damaged
'brain dead adj [no comp.] 1 med in a state in which brain
death has happened: She was pronounced brain dead on
Sunday. 2 infml, derog (of a person) stupid; slow to under-
stand: a television film for the brain dead
'brain death n [U] med the failure of a person's breathing and
other actions of the body because of brain damage, even
though the heart may continue to beat when the body is on
a life-supporting machine
'brain drain n a movement of large numbers of highly
skilled or professional people from the country where they
were trained to other countries where they can earn more
money
brain·less /'breɪnləs/ adj silly; stupid —ly adv
'brain stem n the part of the brain that connects the left and
right sides of the brain together, and is also connected to the
SPINAL CORD. It controls many of the things that your body
does, including breathing and the beating of your heart.
brain·storm /'breɪnstɔːm||-stɔːrm/ n infml 1 BrE a sudden
disorder of the mind or change from sensible behaviour
lasting only a short time: I had a brainstorm and forgot to
sign any of the cheques. 2 AmE for BRAINWAVE
brain·storm·ing /'breɪnstɔːmɪŋ||-ɔːr-/ n [U] especially AmE a
method of finding answers to problems in which all the
members of a group think very quickly of as many ideas as
they can
'brains trust BrE || 'brain trust AmE — n [C+sing./pl. v] a
group of people with special knowledge and experience who
answer questions or give advice
'brain surgeon n a doctor who operates on the human
brain. Brain surgeons are thought of as very well-educated,
clever, and skilful people: She's doing alright at school, but
she'll never be a brain surgeon.
brain·teas·er /'breɪntiːzər/ n a problem to exercise the
mind, especially one that is to be answered for pleasure;
PUZZLE
brain·wash /'breɪnwɒʃ||-wɑːʃ, -wɔːʃ/ v [T(into)] derog to
cause (someone) to change their beliefs and ideas, by