brick
/ˈbɹɪk/
Word Rarity
Uncommon
Frequency: 4.25 in modern English
13
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
1
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A shot which misses, particularly one which bounces directly out of the basket because of a too-flat trajectory, as if the ball were a heavier object.
Countable; Slang; Uncountable
noun
A power brick; an external power supply consisting of a small box with an integral male plug and an attached cord terminating in another plug.
Countable; Informal; Uncountable
noun
An electronic device, especially a heavy box-shaped one, that has become non-functional or obsolete.
Countable; Slang; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "This wall is made of bricks."
- "This house is made of brick."
- "They gather one by one, trickling into the shady courtyard, the familiar hum of Mass. Ave. wafting in from behind brick buildings and iron gates."
- "a plastic explosive brick"
- "The handyman considered the question and I knew she had a brick of ground beans in her bag but was considering whether the beds and a hot drink was worth a brick of coffee."
- "He disentangled himself from the safe door and delved inside. He brought out a brick of banknotes."
Etymology
From Late Middle English brik, bryke, bricke, from Middle Low German and Middle Dutch bricke ("cracked or broken brick; tile-stone"; modern Dutch brik), ultimately related to Proto-West Germanic *brekan (“to break”), whence also Old French briche and French brique (“brick”). Compare also German Low German Brickje (“small board, tray”). Related to break. The social media slang sense derives from memes about building up one's feed “brick by brick”, analogizing bricks with reels that inform the algorithm. The sense of a helpful, reliable person comes from Lycurgus referring to the army as the walls of Sparta, every man a brick.