See Also: whitely(2)(dictionary)
whitely(1)(dictionary)
big brother(dictionary)
co-brother(dictionary)
brother(2)(dictionary)
brother(1)(dictionary)
brother-in-law(dictionary)
Brother(medicine)
brother 2, interjection(dictionary)
brother 1, noun(dictionary)

whitely(1) (iou) and brother(1) (iou)


whitely(1) (iou)



whitely adjective. Long obsolete exc. Scot. LME.
[from WHITE adjective + -LY1.]
Pale, esp. of complexion.

brother(1) (iou)



brother noun & adjective. .
[Old English broTor = Old Frisian brother, broder, Old Saxon broTar, Middle & mod. Dutch broeder, Middle & mod. Low German broder, Old High German bruodar (German Bruder), Old Norse broeir, Gothic broTar, from Germanic from Indo-European, whence Latin frater, Greek phrater, Sanskrit bhrat.]
A. noun.
A male related to one or more Other persons (male or female) by having the same parents or by having one parent in common. OE.
adoptive brother, foster-brother, full brother, half-brother, stepbrother, etc.
Bible (AV): Proverbs 18:24 A friend that sticketh closer than a brother. Tennyson Here two brothers..had met And fought.
b. Chiefly in biblical translations (a Hebraism): a kinsman, as uncle, nephew, or cousin. ME.
(With possible inclusion of a minority of females in pl., if not considered significant. Also used before a name and as a form of address or Reference.)
a. A man who is a close friend; a (male) fellow citizen or fellow countryman; an associate, an equal; a person of the same race, colour, or class; a fellow creature. OE.
Tennyson My friend, the brother of my love, My Arthur! C. G. Seligman The extinct Guanches of the Canary Islands showed as least as much racial mixture as their brethren of the mainland. Black Scholar This Black Studies Class will help open the eyes of our so many sleeping brothers. A. Storr Faced with a common enemy..we become brothers in a way which never obtains in ordinary life.
b. A (male) fellow Christian, a co-religionist, a (male) fellow member of a religious society or sect. In pl. (Brethren) spec. members of the Plymouth Brethren (see below). OE.
J. Morley The Protestants..found warm hospitality among their northern brethren. W. G. Simms Call me not Mr., I pray thee...If thou wilt call me Brother Cross, my heart shall acknowledge the bonds between us.
c. Roman Catholic Church. A member of a men's religious congregation or order. ME.
B. Moore Behind Brother Martin, gazing at the shiny tonsure.
d. A (male) fellow member of a guild, trade union, society, regiment, profession, etc.; an official of certain companies etc. LME.
A. H. Quinn He was a member of Kappa Phi, and..he had a right to anything his brothers could give him.
e. Used as a familiar form of address to a man. Also as interjection expr. surprise, annoyance, etc. Chiefly N. Amer. E20.
fig. An identical or similar thing, a counterpart. LME.
Phrases: a man and a brother: see MAN noun. Big Brother: see BIG adjective. brother consanguineous, consanguineous brother (esp. Roman Law): having the same father only. brother German: having the same parents. brother uterine, uterine brother: having the same mother only. Christian Brethren the Plymouth Brethren; members of the Plymouth Brethren. consanguineous brother: see brother consanguineous above. Elder Brother: see ELDER adjective. Exclusive Brethren the more exclusive section of the Plymouth Brethren; members of the Exclusive Brethren. lay brother: see LAY adjective. Open Brethren the less exclusive section of the Plymouth Brethren; members of the Open Brethren. Plymouth Brethren the Calvinistic religious body formed at Plymouth c 1830 with no formal creed and no official order of ministers; members of the Plymouth Brethren. the Brethren (a) in the New Testament, the members of the early Christian Churches; (b) the Plymouth Brethren. United Brethren: see UNITED adjective. uterine brother: see brother uterine above.
b. attrib. or as adjective. (Freq. with hyphen.) That is a brother; belonging to the same group; close as a brother; fellow-. LME.
Pope Two brother-heroes shall from thee be born. R. Burns Land o' Cakes and brither Scots. J. Raban One of his brother officers wandered into the mess.
Special collocations & comb.: brother-in-arms a fighter in the same cause. brother-in-law, pl. brothers-in-law, the brother of one's husband or wife, or the husband of one's sister(-in-law). Brother JONATHAN.
brothership noun (a) brotherhood OE.