brake1
n.
a device for slowing or stopping a moving vehicle, typically by applying pressure to the wheels.
v.
slow or stop a moving vehicle using a brake.
Etymology
C18: of unknown origin.
brake2
n.
historical an open horse-drawn carriage with four wheels.
Etymology
C19: var. of break2.
brake3
n.
- a toothed instrument used for crushing flax and hemp.
-
(also brake harrow)
a heavy machine formerly used for breaking up large lumps of earth.
Etymology
ME: perh. rel. to break1.
brake4
Etymology
OE bracu (orig. in the pl. in fearnbraca ‘thickets of fern’), rel. to Mid. Low Ger. brake ‘branch, stump’.
brake5
n.
a coarse fern of warm countries, typically with fronds divided into long segments.
[Genus
Pteris.]
▸archaic bracken.
Etymology
ME: perh. an abbrev. of bracken (interpreted as pl.).