bracket

B2 Topic:Money & Finance

US /ˈbɹækɪt/ See IPA manual

Freq #24332

Meanings

1

noun
One of a set of ranges into which things are grouped, such as for tax or age.

A pay rise pushed her into a higher tax bracket.
2

noun
A support fixed to a wall to hold up a shelf or other object.

He fixed metal brackets to the wall to hold the shelf.
3

verb
To group or classify things together.

The coach bracketed the younger players with the older ones.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

2 noun · a support fixed to a wall... wall bracket

More parensparentheses

Word family

Forms bracketedbracketingbrackets

Derived forms bracketerbracketlessbracketlikebracketologybracketrybracketwisebracketybroketmultibracketsuperbracketunbracket

Related forms apostrophe brace colon comma dash ellipsis guillemet hyphen interpunctinterrobangperiod semicolon

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

bracket creep
movement into a higher income-tax band as nominal earnings increase

Noun + noun

Simplified etymology

Bracket, recorded in the late 16th century, apparently came through French braguette from Spanish bragueta “codpiece, bracket, corbel.” Its ultimate base is Latin brāca, the singular corresponding to brācae “breeches”; the architectural support may have been named for its resemblance to a codpiece. A mistaken association with Latin brachium “arm” probably later influenced its sense as a support.

Etymology

From earlier bragget, *bracket, from Middle English *braget, *braket (attested in braket nail), from Old French braguette (“the opening in the fore part of a pair of breeches, one's fly”), a diminutive of Old French brague (“knickers, britches”), from Old Occitan braga, from Latin brāca (“pants”), from Transalpine Gaulish *brāca, from Proto-Germanic *brāks, an early form of Proto-Germanic *brōks (“leggings, breeches, trousers”).

*braget Middle English braguette Old French brague Old French braga pro brāca Latin *brāca xtg *brōks Proto-Germanic

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Money & Finance

External links

# bracket

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B2
**Part of speech:** noun, verb
**IPA (US):** /ˈbɹækɪt/
**Frequency rank:** 24332

## Meanings
1. One of a set of ranges into which things are grouped, such as for tax or age.
2. A support fixed to a wall to hold up a shelf or other object.
3. To group or classify things together.

## Examples
- A pay rise pushed her into a higher tax bracket.
- He fixed metal brackets to the wall to hold the shelf.
- The coach bracketed the younger players with the older ones.

## Synonyms
- parens
- parentheses

## Derived Forms
- bracketer
- bracketless
- bracketlike
- bracketology
- bracketry
- bracketwise
- brackety
- broket
- multibracket
- superbracket
- unbracket

## Related Forms
- apostrophe
- brace
- colon
- comma
- dash
- ellipsis
- guillemet
- hyphen
- interpunct
- interrobang
- period
- semicolon

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *braget
- Root: braguette
- Root: brague
- Root: braga
- Root: brāca
- Root: *brāca
- Root: *brōks

## Etymology
From earlier bragget, *bracket, from Middle English *braget, *braket (attested in braket nail), from Old French braguette (“the opening in the fore part of a pair of breeches, one's fly”), a diminutive of Old French brague (“knickers, britches”), from Old Occitan braga, from Latin brāca (“pants”), from Transalpine Gaulish *brāca, from Proto-Germanic *brāks, an early form of Proto-Germanic *brōks (“leggings, breeches, trousers”).

## AI Etymology
Bracket comes from earlier bragget, *bracket, from Middle English *braget, *braket (attested in braket nail), from Old French braguette (“the opening in the fore part of a pair of breeches, one's fly”), a diminutive of Old French brague (“knickers, britches”), from Old Occitan braga, from Latin brāca (“pants”), from Transalpine Gaulish *brāca, from Proto-Germanic *brāks, an early form of Proto-Germanic *brōks (“leggings, breeches, trousers”).

## Topics
- Money & Finance

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