abreast

English

Etymology

Mid-15th century, a- (“on, of”) +‎ breast (“chest”), in sense “breasts (chests) in line, side-by-side and exactly equally advanced”; roughly “breast-by-breast”. Other senses of “equally advanced” developed metaphorically. Phrase keep abreast “keep informed, up to the same level as oneself” is from the 1650s.

Pronunciation

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Adverb

abreast (comparative more abreast, superlative most abreast)

1. Informed, well-informed, familiar, acquainted
2. Side by side, facing forward, with breasts in a line; as,

   • Two men could hardly walk abreast. - Thomas Babington Macaulay

3. (nautical) Side by side; also, opposite; over against; on a line with the vessel's beam; – with of.
4. Up to a certain level or line; equally advanced; as, to keep abreast of [or with] the present state of science.
5. (obsolete): At the same time; simultaneously

   • Abreast therewith began a convocation. - Thomas Fuller

Synonyms

• (informed): apprised, up to date/up-to-date

Translations

informed

Dutch: op de hoogte, bekend, goed ingelicht, welingelicht Estonian: kursis (et) Finnish: tietoinen, ajan tasalla French: au courant (fr) German: auf dem Laufenden

Italian: essere aggiornato, stare al passo (con i tempi, con le notizie), mantenersi al corrente Portuguese: bem informado Spanish: al corriente

side by side

Bulgarian: редом, един до друг, на един ред, рамо до рамо Dutch: zij aan zij Finnish: rinnakkain, vierekkäin, vierivieressä French: côte à côte (fr) German: beieinander

Italian: affiancato, di pari passo Polish: obok siebie Portuguese: lado a lado Russian: в ряд (ru), на одной линии (ru) Spanish: de lado a lado

nautical: side by side; also, opposite; over against; on a line with the vessel's beam

Finnish: kyljittäin (fi) Italian: al traverso

Russian: на одной линии (ru), на траверзе (ru), борт о борт (ru)

up to a certain level or line

Finnish: tasalla (fi)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.

• Interlingua: in fila lateral (2)
• Vietnamese: đi sóng hàng với nhau, theo kịp thời đại

Anagrams

• abaters