Pronunciation Adjective
brazen
- (archaic) Pertaining to, made of, or resembling brass (in color or strength).
- 1786, Francis Grose, Military Antiquities Respecting a History of the English Army, from the Conquest to the Present Time, London: Printed for S. Hooper […], OCLC 745209064 ↗; republished as Military Antiquities Respecting a History of the English Army, from the Conquest to the Present Time, volume II, new [2nd] edition with material additions and improvements, London: Printed for T[homas] Egerton, […]; & G. Kearsley, […], 1801, OCLC 435979550 ↗, page 262 ↗:
- smallcaps Brazen or rather copper swords seem to have been next introduced; these in process of time, workmen learned to harden by the addition of some other metal or mineral, which rendered them almost equal in temper to iron.
- 1786, Francis Grose, Military Antiquities Respecting a History of the English Army, from the Conquest to the Present Time, London: Printed for S. Hooper […], OCLC 745209064 ↗; republished as Military Antiquities Respecting a History of the English Army, from the Conquest to the Present Time, volume II, new [2nd] edition with material additions and improvements, London: Printed for T[homas] Egerton, […]; & G. Kearsley, […], 1801, OCLC 435979550 ↗, page 262 ↗:
- Sounding harsh and loud, like brass cymbals or brass instruments.
- 1697, Virgil; John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. Translated into English Verse; […], London: Printed for Jacob Tonson, […], OCLC 839376905 ↗; republished as The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. Translated into English Verse by Mr. Dryden. In Three Volumes'', volume III, 5th edition, London: Printed by Jacob Tonson […], 1721, OCLC 181805247 ↗, book IX, page 822, lines 667–670 ↗:
- And now the Trumpets terribly from far, / With rattling Clangor, rouze the sleepy War. / The Souldiers Shouts succeed the Brazen Sounds, / And Heav'n, from Pole to Pole, the Noise rebounds.
- 1697, Virgil; John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. Translated into English Verse; […], London: Printed for Jacob Tonson, […], OCLC 839376905 ↗; republished as The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. Translated into English Verse by Mr. Dryden. In Three Volumes'', volume III, 5th edition, London: Printed by Jacob Tonson […], 1721, OCLC 181805247 ↗, book IX, page 822, lines 667–670 ↗:
- (archaic) Extremely strong; impenetrable; resolute.
- Shamelessly shocking and offensive; audacious; impudent; barefaced; immodest, unblushing. [from 1570s.]
- She was brazen enough to deny stealing the handbag even though she was caught on closed-circuit television doing so.
- French: aigu, aigue
- Italian: squillante
- French: dur comme de la pierre, impénétrable
- French: grossier, grossière, brutal, brutale, éhonté, éhontée
- German: dreist, schamlos
- Italian: faccia di bronzo, sfacciato, sfrontato
- Portuguese: descarado
- Russian: бессты́жий
brazen (brazens, present participle brazening; past and past participle brazened)
- (intransitive) To turn#Verb|turn a brass color.
- (transitive) Generally followed by out or through: to carry through in a brazen manner; to act boldly despite embarrassment, risk#Noun|risk, etc. [from 1550s.]
- 1887, William Black, “Flight”, in Sabina Zembra: A Novel [...] In Three Volumes, volume I, London; New York, N.Y.: Macmillan and Co., OCLC 22523627 ↗, page 171 ↗:
- Sabina brazened it out before Mrs. Wygram; but inwardly she was resolved to be a good deal more circumspect.
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