branch

A2 Topic:Plants & Agriculture

US /bɹænt͡ʃ/ UK /bɹɑːnt͡ʃ/ See IPA manual

Freq #3877

Meanings

1

noun
A part of a tree that grows out from the trunk.

A bird sat on a branch of the old oak tree.
2

noun
A local office or part of a larger company or organization.

The bank opened a new branch in our town.
3

verb
To divide into two or more parts, like the branches of a tree.

The road branches in two just past the bridge.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a part of a tree that grows... bough limb twig

2 noun · a local office or part of a... subdivision

3 verb · to divide into two or more... fork

More ramify

Opposites

crotch

Word family

Forms branchedbranchesbranchingbranchy

Derived forms branchedbrancherybranchfulbranchlessbranchletbranchlikebranchlingbranchwisebranchworkbranchy

Related forms branch-decompositionbranch-waterbranchwaydebranchdisbranchinterbranchpseudobranchrebranchroot-and-branch

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

a branch office
a secondary location of a company, separate from the main headquarters

Adjective + noun

Etymology

From Middle English branche, braunche, bronche, from Old French branche, branke, from Late Latin branca (“footprint”, later also “paw, claw”) (whence Middle High German pranke, German Pranke (“paw”)), of unknown origin. Perhaps of Celtic origin, from a hypothetical Gaulish *vranca, from Proto-Indo-European *wrónk-eh₂. If so, then Indo-European cognates include Old Norse rá, vró (“angle, corner”), and possibly Lithuanian rankà (“hand”), Old Church Slavonic рѫка (rǫka, “hand”), Albanian rangë (“yardwork”). The verb is from Middle English braunchen, from the noun.

branche Middle English branca la-lat *vranca cel-gau braunchen Middle English

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Plants & Agriculture

External links

# branch

**Type:** Word
**Level:** A2
**Part of speech:** noun, verb
**IPA (US):** /bɹænt͡ʃ/
**IPA (UK):** /bɹɑːnt͡ʃ/
**Frequency rank:** 3877

## Meanings
1. A part of a tree that grows out from the trunk.
2. A local office or part of a larger company or organization.
3. To divide into two or more parts, like the branches of a tree.

## Examples
- A bird sat on a branch of the old oak tree.
- The bank opened a new branch in our town.
- The road branches in two just past the bridge.

## Synonyms
- ramify

## Antonyms
- crotch

## Derived Forms
- branched
- branchery
- branchful
- branchless
- branchlet
- branchlike
- branchling
- branchwise
- branchwork
- branchy

## Related Forms
- branch-decomposition
- branch-water
- branchway
- debranch
- disbranch
- interbranch
- pseudobranch
- rebranch
- root-and-branch

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: branche
- Root: branca
- Root: *vranca
- Root: braunchen

## Etymology
From Middle English branche, braunche, bronche, from Old French branche, branke, from Late Latin branca (“footprint”, later also “paw, claw”) (whence Middle High German pranke, German Pranke (“paw”)), of unknown origin. Perhaps of Celtic origin, from a hypothetical Gaulish *vranca, from Proto-Indo-European *wrónk-eh₂. If so, then Indo-European cognates include Old Norse rá, vró (“angle, corner”), and possibly Lithuanian rankà (“hand”), Old Church Slavonic рѫка (rǫka, “hand”), Albanian rangë (“yardwork”). The verb is from Middle English braunchen, from the noun.

## AI Etymology
Branch comes from Middle English branche, braunche, bronche, from Old French branche, branke, from Late Latin branca (“footprint”, later also “paw, claw”) (whence Middle High German pranke, German Pranke (“paw”)), of unknown origin. Perhaps of Celtic origin, from a hypothetical Gaulish *vranca, from Proto-Indo-European *wrónk-eh₂. If so, then Indo-European cognates include Old Norse rá, vró (“angle, corner”), and possibly Lithuanian rankà (“hand”), Old Church Slavonic рѫка (rǫka, “hand”), Albanian rangë (“yardwork”). The verb is from Middle English braunchen, from the noun.

## Topics
- Plants & Agriculture

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