BRAIN

brain, encephalon

(noun) that part of the central nervous system that includes all the higher nervous centers; enclosed within the skull; continuous with the spinal cord

mind, head, brain, psyche, nous

(noun) that which is responsible for one’s thoughts, feelings, and conscious brain functions; the seat of the faculty of reason; “his mind wandered”; “I couldn’t get his words out of my head”

brain, brainpower, learning ability, mental capacity, mentality, wit

(noun) mental ability; “he’s got plenty of brains but no common sense”

brain

(noun) the brain of certain animals used as meat

genius, mastermind, brain, brainiac, Einstein

(noun) someone who has exceptional intellectual ability and originality; “Mozart was a child genius”; “he’s smart but he’s no Einstein”

brain

(verb) kill by smashing someone’s skull

brain

(verb) hit on the head

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Noun

brain (plural brains)

The control center of the central nervous system of an animal located in the skull which is responsible for perception, cognition, attention, memory, emotion, and action.

(informal) An intelligent person.

(plurale tantum) A person who provides the intelligence required for something.

(in the plural) Intellect.

(in the singular) An intellectual or mental capacity.

By analogy with a human brain, the part of a machine or computer that performs calculations.

(slang, vulgar) Oral sex.

(informal, slang) Mind.

Synonyms

• harns

• See also brain

• See also genius

Verb

brain (third-person singular simple present brains, present participle braining, simple past and past participle brained)

(transitive) To dash out the brains of; to kill by smashing the skull.

(transitive, slang) To strike (someone) on the head.

(transitive, figurative) To destroy; to put an end to.

(transitive, obsolete) To conceive in the mind; to understand.

Anagrams

• Brian, Rabin, abrin, bairn, brian

Proper noun

Brain (plural Brains)

A surname.

Statistics

• According to the 2010 United States Census, Brain is the 18156th most common surname in the United States, belonging to 1533 individuals. Brain is most common among White (90.67%) individuals.

Anagrams

• Brian, Rabin, abrin, bairn, brian

Source: Wiktionary


Brain, n. Etym: [OE. brain, brein, AS. bragen, brægen; akin to LG. brägen, bregen, D. brein, and perh. to Gr. 95.]

1. (Anat.)

Definition: The whitish mass of soft matter (the center of the nervous system, and the seat of consciousness and volition) which is inclosed in the cartilaginous or bony cranium of vertebrate animals. It is simply the anterior termination of the spinal cord, and is developed from three embryonic vesicles, whose cavities are connected with the central canal of the cord; the cavities of the vesicles become the central cavities, or ventricles, and the walls thicken unequally and become the three segments, the fore-, mid-, and hind-brain.

Note: In the brain of man the cerebral lobes, or largest part of the forebrain, are enormously developed so as to overhang the cerebellum, the great lobe of the hindbrain, and completely cover the lobes of the midbrain. The surface of the cerebrum is divided into irregular ridges, or convolutions, separated by grooves (the so-called fissures and sulci), and the two hemispheres are connected at the bottom of the longitudinal fissure by a great transverse band of nervous matter, the corpus callosum, while the two halves of the cerebellum are connected on the under side of the brain by the bridge, or pons Varolii.

2. (Zoöl.)

Definition: The anterior or cephalic ganglion in insects and other invertebrates.

3. The organ or seat of intellect; hence, the understanding. " My brain is too dull." Sir W. Scott.

Note: In this sense, often used in the plural.

4. The affections; fancy; imagination. [R.] Shak. To have on the brain, to have constantly in one's thoughts, as a sort of monomania. [Low] Brain box or case, the bony on cartilaginous case inclosing the brain.

– Brain coral, Brain stone coral (Zoöl), a massive reef-building coral having the surface covered by ridges separated by furrows so as to resemble somewhat the surface of the brain, esp. such corals of the genera Mæandrina and Diploria.

– Brain fag (Med.), brain weariness. See Cerebropathy.

– Brain fever (Med.), fever in which the brain is specially affected; any acute cerebral affection attended by fever.

– Brain sand, calcareous matter found in the pineal gland.

Brain, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Brained; p. pr. & vb. n. Braining.]

1. To dash out the brains of; to kill by beating out the brains. Hence, Fig.: To destroy; to put an end to; to defeat. There thou mayst brain him. Shak. It was the swift celerity of the death . . . That brained my purpose. Shak.

2. To conceive; to understand. [Obs.] brain not. Shak.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

19 April 2024

SUSPECT

(verb) hold in suspicion; believe to be guilty; “The U.S. suspected Bin Laden as the mastermind behind the terrorist attacks”


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