brag

English

Etymology

From Middle English braggen (“to make a loud noise; to speak boastfully”) of unknown origin. Possibly related to the Middle English adjective brag (“prideful; spirited”), which is probably of Celtic origin; or from Old Norse bragr (“best; foremost; poetry”); or through Old English from Old Norse braka (“to creak”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bɹæɡ/
• Hyphenation: brag
• Rhymes: -æɡ

Noun

brag (plural brags)

1. A boast or boasting; bragging; ostentatious pretence or self-glorification.
   • (Can we date this quote?) William Shakespeare

     Caesar […] made not here his brag / Of "came", and "saw", and "overcame".

2. The thing which is boasted of.
   • (Can we date this quote?) John Milton

     Beauty is Nature's brag.

3. (by ellipsis) The card game three card brag.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Chesterfield to this entry?)

Derived terms

• bragless

Translations

boast — see boast

card game

• French: brag (fr) m

Verb

brag (third-person singular simple present brags, present participle bragging, simple past and past participle bragged)

1. (intransitive) To boast; to talk with excessive pride about what one has, is able to do, or has done; often as an attempt to popularize oneself.

   to brag of one's exploits, courage, or money

   • (Can we date this quote?) William Shakespeare

     Conceit, more rich in matter than in words, / Brags of his substance, not of ornament.

     Nor shall Death brag thou wander'st in his shade

2. (transitive) To boast of.

Synonyms

• boast

Hyponyms

• brag on

Derived terms

• braggart
• humblebrag

Related terms

• bragging rights

Translations

to boast

• Arabic: تَبَاهَى‎ (tabāhā)
• Bulgarian: хваля се (hvalja se), перча се (perča se)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 吹牛 (zh) (chuīniú), 吹噓 (zh), 吹嘘 (zh) (chuīxū), 自誇 (zh), 自夸 (zh) (zìkuā)

• Czech: chvástat se
• Danish: prale
• Dutch: opscheppen (nl)
• Finnish: kerskailla (fi) (jollakin), kerskua (fi) (jostakin), rehennellä (fi), leuhkia (fi)
• French: fanfaronner (fr), se vanter (fr)
• German: angeben (de), prahlen (de)
• Greek:

  Ancient: καυχάομαι (kaukháomai), ἀλαζονεύομαι (alazoneúomai)

• Italian: vantarsi
• Japanese: 自慢する (ja) (jiman suru), 力む (rikimu)
• Maori: whakatāwāhi, whakameremere

• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: skryte

• Persian: لافیدن‎ (fa) (lâfidan)
• Portuguese: gabar-se, vangloriar-se
• Romanian: (se) lăuda
• Russian: хва́статься (ru) (xvástatʹsja)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: хвалити се, хвалисати се, хвастати се

  Roman: hvaliti se (sh), hvalisati se (sh), hvastati se

• Slovak: vychvaľovať sa, chvastať sa
• Spanish: fanfarronear (es), presumir (es), jactarse (es)
• Swedish: skryta (sv)
• Turkish: böbürlenmek (tr), iftihar etmek (tr), övünmek (tr)
• Westrobothnian: brega

Adjective

brag (comparative bragger, superlative braggest)

1. Excellent; first-rate.
2. (archaic) Brisk; full of spirits; boasting; pretentious; conceited.
   • (Can we date this quote?) Ben Jonson

   a brag young fellow

Adverb

brag (comparative more brag, superlative most brag)

1. (obsolete) proudly; boastfully

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Fuller to this entry?)

Anagrams

• ARGB, garb, grab

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Danish

Etymology

From Old Norse brak.

Noun

brag n (singular definite braget, plural indefinite brag)

1. bang, crash

Inflection

Declension of brag

neuter gender	Singular		Plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	brag	braget	brag	bragene
genitive	brags	bragets	brags	bragenes

Related terms

• brage verb

Verb

brag

1. imperative of brage

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North Frisian

Etymology

From Old Frisian bregge, which derives from Proto-Germanic *brugjǭ. Cognates include West Frisian brêge.

Noun

brag f (plural bragen)

1. (Föhr-Amrum) bridge