n. [ OF. brace, brasse, the two arms, embrace, fathom, F. brasse fathom, fr. L. bracchia the arms (stretched out), pl. of bracchium arm; cf. Gr. &unr_;. ] 1. That which holds anything tightly or supports it firmly; a bandage or a prop. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A cord, ligament, or rod, for producing or maintaining tension, as a cord on the side of a drum. [ 1913 Webster ]

The little bones of the ear drum do in straining and relaxing it as the braces of the war drum do in that. Derham. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. The state of being braced or tight; tension. [ 1913 Webster ]

The laxness of the tympanum, when it has lost its brace or tension. Holder. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (Arch. & Engin.) A piece of material used to transmit, or change the direction of, weight or pressure; any one of the pieces, in a frame or truss, which divide the structure into triangular parts. It may act as a tie, or as a strut, and serves to prevent distortion of the structure, and transverse strains in its members. A boiler brace is a diagonal stay, connecting the head with the shell. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. (Print.) A vertical curved line connecting two or more words or lines, which are to be taken together; thus, boll, bowl; or, in music, used to connect staves. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. (Naut.) A rope reeved through a block at the end of a yard, by which the yard is moved horizontally; also, a rudder gudgeon. [ 1913 Webster ]

7. (Mech.) A curved instrument or handle of iron or wood, for holding and turning bits, etc.; a bitstock. [ 1913 Webster ]

8. A pair; a couple; as, a brace of ducks; now rarely applied to persons, except familiarly or with some contempt. “A brace of greyhounds.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

He is said to have shot . . . fifty brace of pheasants. Addison. [ 1913 Webster ]

A brace of brethren, both bishops, both eminent for learning and religion, now appeared in the church. Fuller. [ 1913 Webster ]

But you, my brace of lords. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

9. pl. Straps or bands to sustain trousers; suspenders. [ 1913 Webster ]

I embroidered for you a beautiful pair of braces. Thackeray. [ 1913 Webster ]

10. Harness; warlike preparation. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

For that it stands not in such warlike brace. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

11. Armor for the arm; vantbrace. [ 1913 Webster ]

12. (Mining) The mouth of a shaft. [ Cornwall ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Angle brace. See under Angle. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Braced p. pr. & vb. n. Bracing. ] 1. To furnish with braces; to support; to prop; as, to brace a beam in a building. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To draw tight; to tighten; to put in a state of tension; to strain; to strengthen; as, to brace the nerves. [ 1913 Webster ]

And welcome war to brace her drums. Campbell. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To bind or tie closely; to fasten tightly. [ 1913 Webster ]

The women of China, by bracing and binding them from their infancy, have very little feet. Locke. [ 1913 Webster ]

Some who spurs had first braced on. Sir W. Scott. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. To place in a position for resisting pressure; to hold firmly; as, he braced himself against the crowd. [ 1913 Webster ]

A sturdy lance in his right hand he braced. Fairfax. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. (Naut.) To move around by means of braces; as, to brace the yards. [ 1913 Webster ]

To brace about (Naut.), to turn (a yard) round for the contrary tack. --
To brace a yard (Naut.), to move it horizontally by means of a brace. --
To brace in (Naut.), to turn (a yard) by hauling in the weather brace. --
To brace one's self, to call up one's energies. “He braced himself for an effort which he was little able to make.” J. D. Forbes. --
To brace to (Naut.), to turn (a yard) by checking or easing off the lee brace, and hauling in the weather one, to assist in tacking. --
To brace up (Naut.), to bring (a yard) nearer the direction of the keel by hauling in the lee brace. --
To brace up sharp (Naut.), to turn (a yard) as far forward as the rigging will permit. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To get tone or vigor; to rouse one's energies; -- with up. [ Colloq. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. held up by braces or buttresses.
Syn. -- buttressed. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ F. bracelet, dim. of OF. bracel armlet, prop. little arm, dim. of bras arm, fr. L. bracchium. See Brace, n. ] 1. An ornamental band or ring, for the wrist or the arm; in modern times, an ornament encircling the wrist, worn by women or girls. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A piece of defensive armor for the arm. Johnson. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. That which braces, binds, or makes firm; a band or bandage. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A covering to protect the arm of the bowman from the vibration of the string; also, a brassart. Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. A medicine, as an astringent or a tonic, which gives tension or tone to any part of the body. Johnson. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. 1. (Naut.) To brace in opposite directions; as, to counterbrace the yards, i. e., to brace the head yards one way and the after yards another. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Engin.) To brace in such a way that opposite strains are resisted; to apply counter braces to. [ 1913 Webster ]

1. (Naut.) The brace of the fore-topsail on the leeward side of a vessel. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Engin.) A brace, in a framed structure, which resists a strain of a character opposite to that which a main brace is designed to receive. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ In a quadrilateral system of bracing, the main brace is usually in the direction of one diagonal, and the counter brace in the direction of the other. Strains in counter braces are occasioned by the live load only, as, in a roof, by the wind, or, in a bridge, by a moving train. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ Pref. em- (intens.) + brace, v. t. ] To fasten on, as armor. [ Obs. ] Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Embraced p. pr. & vb. n. Embracing ] [ OE. embracier, F. embrasser; pref. em- (L. in) + F. bras arm. See Brace, n. ] 1. To clasp in the arms with affection; to take in the arms; to hug. [ 1913 Webster ]

I will embrace him with a soldier's arm,
That he shall shrink under my courtesy. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

Paul called unto him the disciples, and embraced them. Acts xx. 1. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To cling to; to cherish; to love. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To seize eagerly, or with alacrity; to accept with cordiality; to welcome. “I embrace these conditions.” “You embrace the occasion.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

What is there that he may not embrace for truth? Locke. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. To encircle; to encompass; to inclose. [ 1913 Webster ]

Low at his feet a spacious plain is placed,
Between the mountain and the stream embraced. Denham. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. To include as parts of a whole; to comprehend; to take in; as, natural philosophy embraces many sciences. [ 1913 Webster ]

Not that my song, in such a scanty space,
So large a subject fully can embrace. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. To accept; to undergo; to submit to. “I embrace this fortune patiently.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

7. (Law) To attempt to influence corruptly, as a jury or court. Blackstone.

Syn. -- To clasp; hug; inclose; encompass; include; comprise; comprehend; contain; involve; imply. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To join in an embrace. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Intimate or close encircling with the arms; pressure to the bosom; clasp; hug. [ 1913 Webster ]

We stood tranced in long embraces,
Mixed with kisses. Tennyson. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. F. embrassement. ] 1. A clasp in the arms; embrace. [ 1913 Webster ]

Dear though chaste embracements. Sir P. Sidney. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. State of being contained; inclosure. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

In the embracement of the parts hardly reparable, as bones. Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Willing acceptance. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

A ready embracement of . . . his kindness. Barrow. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Law) One guilty of embracery. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who embraces. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Law) An attempt to influence a court, jury, etc., corruptly, by promises, entreaties, money, entertainments, threats, or other improper inducements. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Naut.) A rope applied to the fore yardarm, to change the position of the foresail. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Embracery. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To brace again. Gray. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To embrace again. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. 1. to appear once more.
Syn. -- reappear, appear again. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ F. arri&unr_;re-bras. ] (Anc. Armor) Armor for the upper part of the arm. Fairholt. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A leather strap supporting the body of a carriage, and attached to springs, or serving as a spring. See Illust. of Chaise. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ 1st pref. un- + brace. ] To free from tension; to relax; to loose; as, to unbrace a drum; to unbrace the nerves. Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To brace, fasten, or bind underneath or below. Cowper. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ See Vantbrass. ] (Anc. Armor) The piece designed to protect the arm from the elbow to the wrist. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n. [ F. avant fore + bras arm: cf. F. brassard armor for the arm, brace, forearm. Cf. Vambrace. ] (Anc. Armor) Armor for the arm; vambrace. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]