Bracket

Part of speech: noun, verb

Pronunciation: /ˈbɹækɪt/

Definitions

1. A device used to hold or support something in place or attach it securely ; a set or range of values or items grouped together by a common attribute ; to enclose something within marks or to classify it within a group
2. An object, often metal or wooden, designed to fasten or support structures or items ; a collection or interval of related elements classified together ; the act of placing something within boundary symbols or categorizing it under a specific group
3. A structural or mechanical fixture that holds parts firmly ; a series of items arranged or classified according to shared features ; the action of marking or enclosing content to indicate a category or classification

Etymology: The most surprising step in this word's history is its trip from the trousers. "Brague" was a Old French word for breeches or britches, and its diminutive "braguette" referred to the opening at the front of a pair of breeches, what we would now call the fly. That diminutive is the ancestor of our "bracket," which at first described a piece of wood or metal supporting something, perhaps by analogy with the way the legs of a garment are joined. The chain runs back further than France. The Old French word came from Old Occitan "braga," which traces to Latin "brāca," a term for trousers borrowed from Transalpine Gaulish, the Celtic language of Gaul. Behind that stands a Proto-Germanic form, "brāks," the source of the Germanic word for leggings or trousers. So a word for a pair of breeches, carried across several languages, ended up naming the braces that hold a shelf to a wall.

Synonyms: support, shelf, mount, clip, girdle

Antonyms: detach, remove