See Also: bailey(dictionary)
Old Bailey(dictionary)
Bailey's(dictionary)
bailey(dictionary)
Bailey bridge(dictionary)
Bailey, Pearl (Mae)(encyclopedia)
Bailey (as used in expressions)(encyclopedia)
Bailey, David(dictionary)
BAILEY CONTROLS(finance)
Aldrich, Thomas Bailey(encyclopedia)

brake 1, noun (oh) and bailey (iou)


brake 1, noun (oh)



a piece of equipment that makes a vehicle go more slowly or stop
::Test your brakes after driving through water.
::Moira slammed on the brakes (=use them suddenly and with a lot of force) and skidded to a halt.
::I managed to put on the brakes just in time.
the rear/front brakes
::a car equipped with anti-lock brakes
::the screech of brakes (=the loud unpleasant noise they can make)
apply the brakes formal
::Williams testified that he tried to apply the brakes but couldn't stop the vehicle in time.
act as a brake on sth
to make something develop more slowly, be more difficult to do, or happen less
::Rises in interest rates usually act as a brake on expenditure.
put the brakes on sth
to stop something that is happening

bailey (iou)



bailey noun. ME.
[Prob. from Old French bail, bail(l)e (whence medieval Latin ballium, ballia): see BAIL noun2.]
The outer wall and first line of defence of a castle; gen. any of a castle's defensive circuits. ME.
The outer court of a castle; any of the courts enclosed between the circuits of walls or defences. E16.
Old Bailey the seat of the Central Criminal Court in London, which formerly stood in the ancient bailey of the city wall between Lud Gate and New Gate.