What does "brine" mean?
Salt water; water saturated or strongly impregnated with salt; a salt-and-water solution for pickling.
Brine
/bɹaɪn/ name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·Moderate ·College level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Salt water; water saturated or strongly impregnated with salt; a salt-and-water solution for pickling.
- Grammar: brine is listed as name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: saltwater, blue, corn, cure.
- Useful contrasts: dehydrate, distilled water, dry.
- Usage evidence: Tunnels within sea ice called brine channels house bacteria and algae that feed flatworms and other tunnel-dwelling creatures.
How to use "brine"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "brine" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "brine" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "brine" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "brine" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "brine" is acting as name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "saltwater" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "brine", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Salt water; water saturated or strongly impregnated with salt; a salt-and-water solution for pickling. uncountable, usually
"Do you want a can of tuna in oil or in brine?"
- 2 a strong solution of salt and water used for pickling wordnet
- 3 The sea or ocean; the water of the sea. uncountable, usually
"Ariell: Not a ſoule But felt a Feauer of the madde, and plaid Some tricks of deſperation ; all but Mariners Plung'd in the foaming bryne, and quit the veſſell ; Then all a fire with me the Kings ſonne Ferdinand With haire vp-ſtaring (then like reeds, not haire) Was the firſt man that leapt ; cride hell is empty, And all the Diuels are heere."
- 4 water containing salts wordnet
Verb
- 1 To preserve food in a salt solution. transitive
- 2 soak in brine wordnet
- 3 To prepare and flavor food (especially meat) for cooking by soaking in a salt solution. transitive
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Antonyms
Example
"Tunnels within sea ice called brine channels house bacteria and algae that feed flatworms and other tunnel-dwelling creatures."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "brine"?
Common synonyms include: saltwater, blue, corn, cure, deep, dehydrate.
How do you use "brine" in a sentence?
Tunnels within sea ice called brine channels house bacteria and algae that feed flatworms and other tunnel-dwelling creatures.
How do you pronounce "brine"?
Pronounced /bɹaɪn/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English brine, bryne, from Old English brīne, from Proto-West Germanic *brīnā, from Proto-Germanic *brīnǭ (“salt water, brine”) (compare Scots brime, West Frisian brein, Dutch brijn (“brine”), West Flemish brijne), of unknown ultimate origin, but probably from Proto-Indo-European *bʰreyH- (“to cut, maim”). Cognates include Old Irish ro·bria (“may hurt, damage”), Latin friāre (“to rub, crumble”), Slovene bríti (“to shave, shear”), Albanian brej (“to gnaw”), Sanskrit बृणाति (bṛṇā́ti, “they injure, hurt”). Alternatively, from Proto-Indo-European *mriHnós, from *móri (compare Latin marīnus).
Etymology 2
* As a Dutch surname, Americanized from Bruin. * As an English surname, possibly from Old English bryne (“burning”).