Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Invigorating or refreshing; strengthening.
  • noun A support; a brace.
  • noun Braces considered as a group.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The act of one that braces, or the state of being braced.
  • noun In engineering, a system of braces: as, the bracing of a truss.
  • Having the quality of giving strength or tone; invigorating: as, a bracing air.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun The act of strengthening, supporting, or propping, with a brace or braces; the state of being braced.
  • noun (Engin.) Any system of braces; braces, collectively.
  • adjective Imparting strength or tone; strengthening; invigorating.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb Present participle of brace.
  • adjective invigorating or stimulating
  • noun a brace
  • noun US a form of the military attention stance

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a structural member used to stiffen a framework
  • adjective imparting vitality and energy

Etymologies

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Examples

  • As I'm going over I get a glance at DeJong, high-bracing from the bow, but he knows the goose is cooked.

    T. 2006

  • Perhaps most bracing is the open struggle its hero wages against his own well-earned cynicism.

    Dark Passage 2006

  • Perhaps most bracing is the open struggle its hero wages against his own well-earned cynicism.

    Dark Passage 2006

  • So the 'result' of having canines that function in bracing may be a by-product that peccaries have used to their advantage.

    Why putting your hand in a peccary’s mouth is a really bad idea Darren Naish 2006

  • Undeniably there’s a certain bracing appeal there, but isn’t that basically Ron Paul’s platform?

    The Volokh Conspiracy » Libertarianism: 2010

  • Richard Riley: Undeniably there’s a certain bracing appeal there, but isn’t that basically Ron Paul’s platform?

    The Volokh Conspiracy » Libertarianism: 2010

  • Short term bracing with a sling, rest, ice, anti-inflammatories and physiotherapy are usually all that’s necessary.

    Shoulder separations explained 2010

  • The other is what historians call the bracing “jeremiad” tradition of harsh warnings that reveal a faith that America can be better than it is.

    How America Can Rise Again 2010

  • The other is what historians call the bracing “jeremiad” tradition of harsh warnings that reveal a faith that America can be better than it is.

    How America Can Rise Again 2010

  • The other is what historians call the bracing “jeremiad” tradition of harsh warnings that reveal a faith that America can be better than it is.

    How America Can Rise Again 2010

Comments

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  • Strips of carved wood glued to the inside face or back of a stringed instrument's sound board that both strengthen the sound board and allow it to vibrate to create a pleasing tone. Too little bracing will cause the soundboard to warp or break; too much bracing will create a dull tone.

    November 15, 2007

  • "How do you like bracing?"

    oh, never mind ...

    November 15, 2007