brake

The word “brake” means a device that slows or stops a vehicle or machine, usually by friction, or the pedal or lever used to apply it. In plain terms, a brake slows or stops movement, most commonly in a vehicle; to brake means to apply that slowing action.

“Brake” is pronounced brayk (/bɹeɪk/ in IPA).

Here is “brake” used in a sentence: “She slammed on the brakes to avoid the deer in the road.”

The opposite of “brake” — its antonyms — are floor it, put the pedal to the metal, redline and accelerate.

Depending on how it is used, “brake” can be a noun and a verb.

The word “brake” comes from German. Origin uncertain, possibly from a Middle Dutch or Low German word related to breaking or restraining.

“Brake” is a fairly common word in modern English, usually learned at around the A2 level.

“Brake” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: a device that slows or stops a vehicle or machine, usually by friction, or the pedal or lever used to apply it.

Brake refers to slowing or stopping a vehicle, or the device that does so, as in 'hit the brakes'. Break means to shatter, damage, or pause, as in 'break a glass' or 'take a break'; the two are homophones but never interchangeable.

Use brake only when you mean slowing a vehicle or the mechanism that does it, such as 'the driver had to brake sharply'. If you mean stopping an activity or damaging something, the correct word is break.

Braking specifically means applying a vehicle's brakes to slow it, usually through friction. Decelerating is the more general term for any reduction in speed, which can happen by braking, easing off the accelerator, or going uphill.

Frequent phrases include 'slam on the brakes', 'hit the brakes', 'emergency brake', and 'handbrake'. Figuratively, 'put the brakes on' means to slow down or stop a plan or process.