brail

brail
/brayl/, n.
1. Naut. any of several horizontal lines fastened to the edge of a fore-and-aft sail or lateen sail, for gathering in the sail.
2. a leather binding for a hawk's wings, to prohibit flight.
v.t.
3. Naut.
a. to gather or haul in (a sail) by means of brails (usually fol. by up).
b. to transfer (fish) from a net to the hold of a ship.
4. to bind (the wings of a bird) in order to prevent it from flying.
[1400-50; late ME, var. of brayell < AF braiel; OF < ML bracale breechbelt, n. use of neut. of bracalis, equiv. to L brac(ae) trousers ( < Gaulish) + -alis -AL1]

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  • Brail — das kommunale Mehrzweckhaus, auf Puter: Chesa polivalenta Brail ist eine …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Brail — Brail, v. t. (Naut.) To haul up by the brails; used with up; as, to brail up a sail. [1913 Webster] || …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • brail — brail·er; em·brail; brail; …   English syllables

  • Brail — Brail, n. [OE. brayle furling rope, OF. braiol a band placed around the breeches, fr.F. braies, pl., breeches, fr. L. braca, bracae, breeches, a Gallic word; cf. Arm. bragez. Cf. {Breeches}.] [1913 Webster] 1. (Falconry) A thong of soft leather… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • brail — (n.) small rope used on ships, mid 15c., from O.Fr. brail, earlier braiel belt, leather thong, from L. bracale waistbelt, from bracæ breeches (pl., see BREECHES (Cf. breeches)) …   Etymology dictionary

  • brail — [brāl] n. [ME < OFr braiel, a cincture, belt for trousers < braie < L braca, pl. bracae, breeches < Gaul * braca] any of the small ropes attached to the leech of a sail for hauling it in vt. to haul (in) with brails …   English World dictionary

  • brail — (brall, ll mouillées) s. m. Piége pour la chasse aux oiseaux. HISTORIQUE    XIIe s. •   Que si sont pris come oiselet à broi, Gérard de Vienne, 3593.    XIIIe s. •   Si se tenront en nostre loi, Tant qu il nos aient pris al broi, Parton. 9017.… …   Dictionnaire de la Langue Française d'Émile Littré

  • brail — I. noun Etymology: Middle English brayle, from Anglo French braiel, belt, strap, brail, alteration of Old French braiuel belt, probably ultimately from Latin braca pants more at breech Date: 15th century 1. a rope fastened to the leech of a sail… …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • brail — I noun 1. a small net used to draw fish into a boat • Hypernyms: ↑net 2. a small rope (one of several) used to draw a sail in • Hypernyms: ↑rope II verb 1. take in a sail with a brail …   Useful english dictionary

  • brail — Plaice Plaice, n. [F. plaise, plais, prob. fr. L. platessa flatish, plaice. See {Place}.] (Zo[ o]l.) (a) A European food fish ({Pleuronectes platessa}), allied to the flounder, and growing to the weight of eight or ten pounds or more. (b) A large …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Brail — Brails, in a ship, are small ropes passing through pulleys, and used to haul in or up the leeches, bottoms, or corners of sails, before furling Webster s Revised Unabridged Dictionary , 1913.] . These brails belong only to the two courses and the …   Wikipedia

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