Nearby Words
Synonyms
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adjective
1.
of great breadth: The river was too broad to swim across.
2.
measured from side to side: The desk was three feet broad.
3.
of great extent; large: the broad expanse of ocean.
4.
widely diffused; open; full: We awoke to broad daylight.
5.
EXPANDnot limited or narrow; of extensive range or scope: A modern doctor must have a broad knowledge of medicine.
6.
liberal; tolerant: A broad interpretation of the law tempers justice with mercy.
7.
main or general: the broad outlines of a subject.
8.
plain or clear: Her remark was a broad hint of her feelings.
9.
bold; plain-spoken.
10.
indelicate; indecent: He smirked at the broad joke.
11.
(of conversation) rough; countrified.
12.
unconfined; free; unrestrained: It was a hilarious evening of broad mirth.
13.
(of pronunciation) strongly dialectal: He wore kilts and had a broad Scots accent.
14.
Phonetics. (of a transcription) using one basic symbol to represent each phoneme.
15.
COLLAPSEadverb
16.
fully: He was broad awake.
noun
Idioms17.
the broad part of anything.
18.
Slang.
a.
Usually Offensive. a woman.
b.
a promiscuous woman.
19.
Often, broads. Movies, Television. an incandescent or fluorescent lamp used as a general source of light in a studio.
21.
broad on the beam, Nautical. bearing 90° to the heading of a vessel.
22.
broad on the bow, Nautical. bearing 45° to the heading of a vessel.
23.
broad on the quarter, Nautical. bearing 135° to the heading of a vessel.
Origin:
before 1000; Middle English bro(o)d, Old English brād; cognate with Dutch breed, German breit, Old Norse breithr, Gothic braiths
before 1000; Middle English bro(o)d, Old English brād; cognate with Dutch breed, German breit, Old Norse breithr, Gothic braiths
Related forms
broad·ish, adjective
broad·ly, adverb
o·ver·broad, adjective
Antonyms
1. narrow.
1. narrow.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To Broads
Collins
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History
broad
O.E. brad "broad, flat, open, extended," from P.Gmc. *braithaz (cf. O.Fris. bred, O.N. breiðr, Du. breed, Ger. breit, Goth. brouþs), of unknown origin. Not found outside Germanic languages. No clear distinction in sense from wide. Slang extension to meaning "woman"
EXPAND(1911) may be suggestive of broad hips, but it also may trace to Amer.Eng. abroadwife, for a woman away from her husband, often a slave. Earliest use suggests immorality or coarse, low-class women. Because of this negative association, and the rise of women's athletics, the track and field broad jump was changed to the long jump c.1967. Related: Broadly.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Slang Dictionary
broad definition
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Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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