different between brief vs offhand
brief
English
Etymology
From Middle English breef, breve, bref, from Old French brief, bref, from Latin brevis (“short”), from Proto-Indo-European *mré??us (“short, brief”). Doublet of merry.
Pronunciation
- enPR: br?f, IPA(key): /b?i?f/
- Rhymes: -i?f
Adjective
brief (comparative briefer, superlative briefest)
- Of short duration; happening quickly. [from 15th c.]
- Concise; taking few words. [from 15th c.]
- Occupying a small distance, area or spatial extent; short. [from 17th c.]
- 1983, Robert Drewe, The Bodysurfers, Penguin 2009, p. 17:
- On the beach he always wore a straw hat with a red band and a brief pair of leopard print trunks.
- 1983, Robert Drewe, The Bodysurfers, Penguin 2009, p. 17:
- (obsolete) Rife; common; prevalent.
Synonyms
- See also Thesaurus:ephemeral
- See also Thesaurus:concise
Derived terms
- briefen
- briefly
Related terms
- brevity
Translations
Noun
brief (plural briefs)
- (law) A writ summoning one to answer; an official letter or mandate.
- (law) An answer to any action.
- 1996, Japanese Rules of Civil Procedure[4], Article 79, Section 1:
- A written answer or any other brief shall be submitted to the court while allowing a period necessary for the opponent to make preparations with regard to the matters stated therein.
- 1996, Japanese Rules of Civil Procedure[4], Article 79, Section 1:
- (law) A memorandum of points of fact or of law for use in conducting a case.
- (by extension, figuratively) A position of interest or advocacy.
- (law) An attorney's legal argument in written form for submission to a court.
- (English law) The material relevant to a case, delivered by a solicitor to the barrister who tries the case.
- A short news story or report.
- (usually in the plural) underwear briefs.
- (obsolete) A summary, précis or epitome; an abridgement or abstract.
- 1589, Thomas Nashe, The Anatomie of Absurditie[5]:
- […] euen ?o it fareth with mee, who béeing about to anatomize Ab?urditie, am vrged to take a view of ?undry mens vanitie, a ?uruey of their follie, a briefe of their barbari?me […]
- 1589, Thomas Nashe, The Anatomie of Absurditie[5]:
- (Britain, historical) A letter patent, from proper authority, authorizing a collection or charitable contribution of money in churches, for any public or private purpose.
- (slang) A ticket of any type.
Derived terms
- briefs
- control brief
Translations
References
- John A. Simpson and Edward S. C. Weiner, editors (1989) , “brief”, in The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd edition, Oxford: Clarendon Press, ?ISBN
Verb
brief (third-person singular simple present briefs, present participle briefing, simple past and past participle briefed)
- (transitive) To summarize a recent development to some person with decision-making power.
- (transitive, law) To write a legal argument and submit it to a court.
Derived terms
- debrief
Translations
Adverb
brief (comparative more brief, superlative most brief)
- (obsolete, poetic) Briefly.
- (obsolete, poetic) Soon; quickly.
Related terms
- briefing
- brevity
References
Further reading
- brief in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
- brief in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
- brief at OneLook Dictionary Search
Anagrams
- FBIer, fiber, fibre
Afrikaans
Etymology
From Dutch brief, from Middle Dutch brief, from Old Dutch [Term?], from Latin brevis.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /brif/
Noun
brief (plural briewe)
- letter (written message)
Dutch
Etymology
From Middle Dutch brief, from Old Dutch [Term?], borrowed from Latin brevis (“short”).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /brif/
- Hyphenation: brief
- Rhymes: -if
Noun
brief m (plural brieven, diminutive briefje n)
- letter (written message)
Derived terms
Descendants
- Afrikaans: brief
- ? Sranan Tongo: brifi
References
Middle French
Etymology
From Old French brief.
Adjective
brief m (feminine singular briefve, masculine plural briefs, feminine plural briefves)
- brief; short
Descendants
- French: bref
Old French
Alternative forms
- bref
Etymology
From Latin brevis.
Adjective
brief m (oblique and nominative feminine singular brieve)
- brief, short in length
Declension
Derived terms
- briement
Noun
brief m (oblique plural briés, nominative singular briés, nominative plural brief)
- (short) letter or statement
Descendants
- Middle French: brief
- French: bref
- ? Middle English: bref, breef, breve, brefe, breefe
- English: brief, breve
- Scots: brief, brieve, breef, briefe
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offhand
English
Alternative forms
- off-hand
Etymology
From Middle English *ofhande, *ofhende, from Old English ofhende (“absent, lost”), ultimately from Proto-Germanic *abahandijaz. Equivalent to off- +? hand. Cognate with Icelandic afhendur. Compare onhand.
Pronunciation
- (US) IPA(key): /??f?hænd/
- Rhymes: -ænd
Adjective
offhand (comparative more offhand, superlative most offhand)
- Without planning or thinking ahead.
- Careless; without sufficient thought or consideration.
- Curt, abrupt, unfriendly.
Synonyms
- (without planning): impromptu, extemporaneous, off-the-cuff; see also Thesaurus:impromptu
Translations
See also
- off the top of one's head
Adverb
offhand (comparative more offhand, superlative most offhand)
- Right away, immediately, without thinking about it.
- Offhand, I'd guess that that's a yellow-bellied sapsucker.
- 1854, William Makepeace Thackeray, The Rose and the Ring:
- We will have no more of this shilly-shallying! Call the Archbishop, and let the Prince and Princess be married offhand!
- In an offhand (adjective) manner.
Anagrams
- hand off, hand-off, handoff
offhand From the web:
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