brasa

Catalan

Etymology

Unknown. From Vulgar Latin *brasa, perhaps from a pre-latin substrate or from Proto-West Germanic *brasa, from a Proto-Germanic root related to *brewwaną (“to boil, seethe, brew”). However, compare Proto-Indo-European *bʰres- (“to crack, break, burst”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [ˈbɾa.zə]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [ˈbɾa.za]

• Audio (Barcelona):

  (file)

Noun

brasa f (plural brases)

1. coal, ember

Related terms

• abrasar, abrasir
• abrusar

Further reading

• “brasa”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
• “brasa”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026
• “brasa” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “brasa” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Cebuano

Pronunciation

• Hyphenation: bra‧sa

Noun

brasa

1. (historical) a Flemish ell

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bʁa.za/
• Homophones: brasas, brasât

Verb

brasa

1. third-person singular past historic of braser

Anagrams

• sabra

Galician

Etymology

Inherited from Old Galician-Portuguese brasa, from Vulgar Latin *brasa, of uncertain origin, perhaps Germanic, from Gothic *𐌱𐍂𐌰𐍃𐌰 (*brasa, “glowing coal”), from Proto-Germanic *brasō (“gleed, crackling coal”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrewh₁- (“to seethe, boil, brew”), or from *bʰres- (“to crack, break, burst”).

Cognate with Fala and Portuguese brasa.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbɾasa/ [ˈbɾa.s̺ɐ]
• Rhymes: -asa

Noun

brasa f (plural brasas)

1. (in the singular or in the plural) ember, live coal; embers

   Synonyms: ascua, remol, rescaldo

   sacar a brasa coa man allea (idiom) ― to take away the embers with the hand of other

Derived terms

• á brasa (“roasted”)
• abrasar (“to scorch”)
• braseiro (“brazier”)

References

• Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, editor (2006–2013), “brasa”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios da lingua galega [Dictionary of Dictionaries of the Galician language] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, editors (2003–2018), “brasa”, in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Rosario Álvarez Blanco, editor (2014–2024), “brasa”, in Tesouro do léxico patrimonial galego e portugués (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega, →ISSN

Italian

Verb

brasa

1. inflection of brasare:
   1. third-person singular present
   2. second-person singular imperative

Anagrams

• sabra

Old Galician-Portuguese

Etymology

Inherited from Vulgar Latin *brasa, of uncertain origin.

Cognate with Old Spanish brasa.

Noun

*brasa f (plural brasas)

1. ember (a glowing piece of coal or wood)
   • 1373 January 20, Fernán Martís, “Cõmo Troia ffuy Deſtroyda [How Troy was destroyed]” (chapter 428), in Cronica Troiana [Trojan Chronicle], Kingdom of Galicia, translation of Roman de Troie by Benoît de Sainte-Maure (in Old French), →OCLC, manuscript MSS/10233, page 166v:

     Et aãs caſas p̃ntadas ⁊ nobls todas forõ tornadas en braſas.

     [Et as casas pintadas e nobles todas foron tornadas en brasas.]

     And the painted and noble houses were all turned into embers.

Usage notes

• Only attested in the plural.

Derived terms

• abrasado
• *abrasar

Descendants

• Fala: brasa
• Galician: brasa
• Portuguese: brasa

References

• Barreiro, Xavier Varela; Guinovart, Xavier Gómez (2006–2018), “brasa”, in Corpus Xelmírez: corpus lingüístico da Galicia medieval [Corpus Xelmírez: linguistic corpus of Medieval Galicia] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega
• Cunha, Antônio Geraldo da (2020–2026), “brasa”, in Vocabulário histórico-cronológico do português medieval [Historical and chronological vocabulary of Medieval Portuguese] (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Fundação Casa de Rui Barbosa
• Seoane, Ernesto Xosé González; Granja, María Álvarez de la; Agrelo, Ana Isabel Boullón (2006–2022), “brasa”, in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval [Dictionary of dictionaries of Medieval Galician] (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega

Old Spanish

Etymology

From Old French brese (“glowing charcoal”), of Germanic origin, from Proto-West Germanic *brasa, from a Proto-Germanic root related to *brewwaną (“to boil, seethe, brew”). However, compare Proto-Indo-European *bʰres- (“to crack, break, burst”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbɾaza/

Noun

brasa f (plural brasas)

1. ember, live coal
   • c. 1200, Almeric, Fazienda de Ultramar, f. 56r. col. 1:

     Euelo ami uno de los ſeraphin en ſue mano braſa q̃ con las tenazas p̃ſo del altar etannio ſobre mi boca

     [E voló a mí uno de los seraphin, en sue mano brasa que con las tenazas priso del altar, e tannió sobre mi boca.]

     Then one of the seraphim flew to me; in his hand a live coal he had taken from the altar with tongs, and he touched it on my mouth

   • c. 1200, Almeric, Fazienda de Ultramar, f. 63v. col. 1.:

     en ſemblança delas beſtias ſuujſta cuemo braſas de fuego encendidas e ſemblanca de lampades

     [en semblança de las bestias su vista cuemo brasas de fuego encendidas e semblança de lampades]

     the appearance of the creatures was like burning coals of fire or like torches

Descendants

• Spanish: brasa

Papiamentu

Etymology

From Portuguese braço and Spanish brazo and Kabuverdianu brasu.

Noun

brasa

1. arm (limb)

Verb

brasa

1. to embrace
2. to hug

Portuguese

Etymology

Inherited from Old Galician-Portuguese brasa, from Vulgar Latin *brasa, of uncertain origin.

Cognate with Fala and Galician brasa.

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈbɾa.zɐ/

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈbɾa.zɐ/
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈbɾa.za/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ˈbɾa.zɐ/

• Rhymes: -azɐ
• Hyphenation: bra‧sa

Noun

brasa f (plural brasas)

1. ember (a glowing piece of coal or wood)
2. (by extension) heat, hotness
3. (by extension, colloquial) hottie (attractive person)

Derived terms

• abrasar
• brasil

Further reading

• “brasa”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “brasa”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

Spanish

Etymology

Inherited from Old Spanish brasa, of unknown origin, but probably connected to French braise, of Germanic origin.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbɾasa/ [ˈbɾa.sa]
• Rhymes: -asa
• Syllabification: bra‧sa
• Homophone: (Latin America) braza

Noun

brasa f (plural brasas)

1. hot coal, ember

   Synonym: rescoldo

Derived terms

• abrasar
• dar la brasa

Further reading

• “brasa”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025

Sranan Tongo

Etymology

From Portuguese abraçar.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bɾasa/, [bɾa̠sa̠], [bɾɑ̟sɑ̟]

Noun

brasa

1. embrace, hug, cuddle

Verb

brasa

1. to embrace, to hug, to cuddle

Swedish

Etymology

Ultimately from Proto-Germanic *brasō (“gleed, crackling coal”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrewh₁- (“to seethe, boil, brew”), or from *bʰres- (“to crack, break, burst”).

Noun

brasa c

1. a small, controlled fire used for warmth

Declension

Declension of brasa

		nominative	genitive
singular	indefinite	brasa	brasas
	definite	brasan	brasans
plural	indefinite	brasor	brasors
	definite	brasorna	brasornas

Derived terms

• eldsvåda
• ta sig i brasan
• vådeld

See also

• brand
• bål
• eld
• vårdkase

References

• brasa in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• brasa in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• brasa in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)

Anagrams

• arabs, basar