Middle English

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Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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Borrowed from Old French braire (to cry), from Vulgar Latin *bragiāre, from Gaulish, from Proto-Celtic *bragyeti (to fart).

Alternative forms

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Verb

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brayen (third-person singular simple present brayeth, present participle brayinge, first-/third-person singular past indicative and past participle brayed)

  1. To cry out in alarm or sorrow.
  2. (of an animal) To cry or shriek.
  3. (of the weather, rare) To howl or roar.
Conjugation
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Conjugation of brayen (weak in -ed)
infinitive (to) brayen, braye
present tense past tense
1st-person singular braye brayed
2nd-person singular brayest brayedest
3rd-person singular brayeth brayed
subjunctive singular braye
imperative singular
plural1 brayen, braye brayeden, brayede
imperative plural brayeth, braye
participles brayinge, brayende brayed, ybrayed

1 Sometimes used as a formal 2nd-person singular.

Descendants
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  • English: bray
  • Middle Scots: bray
References
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Etymology 2

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Borrowed from Anglo-Norman breier, possibly from Frankish *brekan, from Proto-Germanic *brekaną; thus a doublet of breken.

Verb

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brayen (third-person singular simple present brayeth, present participle brayinge, first-/third-person singular past indicative and past participle brayed)

  1. To break up; to crush into pieces.
  2. (rare) To stomp or pound upon.
  3. (rare) To push or budge.
Conjugation
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Descendants
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References
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