BRIEF

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does brief mean? 

• BRIEF (noun)
  The noun BRIEF has 2 senses:

1. a document stating the facts and points of law of a client's case

2. a condensed written summary or abstract

  Familiarity information: BRIEF used as a noun is rare.

• BRIEF (adjective)
  The adjective BRIEF has 3 senses:

1. of short duration or distance

2. concise and succinct

3. (of clothing) very short

  Familiarity information: BRIEF used as an adjective is uncommon.

• BRIEF (verb)
  The verb BRIEF has 1 sense:

1. give essential information to someone

  Familiarity information: BRIEF used as a verb is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• BRIEF (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A document stating the facts and points of law of a client's case

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

brief; legal brief

Hypernyms ("brief" is a kind of...):

instrument; legal document; legal instrument; official document ((law) a document that states some contractual relationship or grants some right)

Domain category:

jurisprudence; law (the collection of rules imposed by authority)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "brief"):

amicus curiae brief (a brief presented by someone interested in influencing the outcome of a lawsuit but who is not a party to it)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A condensed written summary or abstract

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Hypernyms ("brief" is a kind of...):

abstract; outline; precis; synopsis (a sketchy summary of the main points of an argument or theory)

Derivation:

brief (give essential information to someone)

• BRIEF (adjective)

Comparative: briefer   
Superlative: briefest   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Of short duration or distance

Context example:

a brief stay in the country

Similar:

short (primarily temporal sense; indicating or being or seeming to be limited in duration)

Derivation:

brevity (the attribute of being brief or fleeting)

briefness (the temporal property of being very short)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Concise and succinct

Context example:

covered the matter in a brief statement

Similar:

concise (expressing much in few words)

Derivation:

brevity (the use of brief expressions)

briefness (the attribute of being brief or fleeting)

Sense 3

Meaning:

(of clothing) very short

Synonyms:

abbreviated; brief

Context example:

a brief bikini

Similar:

short ((primarily spatial sense) having little length or lacking in length)

• BRIEF (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they brief    ... he / she / it briefs   
Past simple: briefed   
Past participle: briefed   
-ing form: briefing   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Give essential information to someone

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Context example:

The reporters were briefed about the President's plan to invade

Hypernyms (to "brief" is one way to...):

apprise; apprize; instruct (make aware of)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s somebody

Derivation:

brief (a condensed written summary or abstract)

briefing (detailed instructions, as for a military operation)

 Context examples 

Previous reports recorded supercooled drizzle at these temperatures, but only for brief durations.

(Drizzle at sub-zero temps recorded in Antarctica, National Science Foundation)

A document, memo or brief that enumerates the differences between two versions of a study protocol document.

(Amendment Change Summary Version Document, NCI Thesaurus)

With a brief glance, facial recognition software can categorize gender with remarkable accuracy.

(Facial recognition software has a gender problem, National Science Foundation)

“The brief window of summer would have barely been sufficient for rowing the many hundreds of miles north and back.”

(Over-hunting walruses contributed to the collapse of Norse Greenland, University of Cambridge)

A very brief application of bioreactor and its payload triggered months of tissue growth and patterning.

(Scientists Help Frogs to Regenerate Their Limbs with Bioreactor Device, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

A brief questionnaire designed to measure fears about recurrence and health in cancer survivors.

(Assessment of Survivor Concerns, NCI Thesaurus)

Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) Check Yes or No if the adjective applies to your pain; aching.

(BPI - Aching, NCI Thesaurus)

Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) Other methods I use to relieve pain include; cold compresses.

(BPI - Cold Compresses to Relieve Pain, NCI Thesaurus)

Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) Are you concerned that you use too much pain medication?

(BPI - Concerned with Too Much Pain Medication Use, NCI Thesaurus)

Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) Check Yes or No if the adjective applies to your pain; burning.

(BPI - Burning, NCI Thesaurus)