What does "brook" mean?
A body of running water smaller than a river; a small stream.
Brook
/bɹʊk/ name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A body of running water smaller than a river; a small stream.
- Grammar: brook is listed as name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: creek, stream, abide, abide.
- Useful contrasts: bar, condemn, dry bed.
- Usage evidence: His pride would not brook such insults.
How to use "brook"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "brook" 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 "brook" 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 "brook" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "brook" 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 "brook" 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 "creek" 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 "brook", 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 A body of running water smaller than a river; a small stream. Northeastern, US
"empties itself, as doth an inland brook / into the main of waters"
- 2 a natural stream of water smaller than a river (and often a tributary of a river) wordnet
- 3 A water meadow. Kent
- 4 Low, marshy ground. Kent, in-plural
Verb
- 1 To bear; endure; support; put up with; tolerate. formal, transitive
"brook no refusal"
- 2 put up with something or somebody unpleasant wordnet
- 3 To enjoy the use of; make use of; profit by; to use, enjoy, possess, or hold. Scotland, transitive
"Yea, my Lord: how brooks your Grace the ayre, / After your late toſſing on the breaking Seas?"
- 4 To earn; deserve. obsolete, transitive
Proper Noun
- 1 A habitational surname from Middle English for someone living by a brook.
- 2 A surname from Hebrew, a transliteration and normalization of Hebrew ברך (barúkh, “blessed”).
- 3 A male given name transferred from the surname, variant of Brooks.
- 4 A female given name transferred from the surname, of modern usage, variant of Brooke.
- 5 A town in Newton County, Indiana, United States.
Show 9 more definitions
- 6 A number of places in England:; A hamlet in Tedburn St Mary parish, Teignbridge district, Devon, divided into Higher and Lower Brook (OS grid ref SX8091).
- 7 A number of places in England:; A hamlet in Tavistock parish, West Devon district, Devon (OS grid ref SX4772).
- 8 A number of places in England:; A hamlet in Bramshaw parish, New Forest district, Hampshire (OS grid ref SU2714).
- 9 A number of places in England:; A hamlet in King's Somborne parish, Test Valley district, Hampshire (OS grid ref SU3428).
- 10 A number of places in England:; A village in Brighstone parish, Isle of Wight (OS grid ref SZ3983).
- 11 A number of places in England:; A village and civil parish in Ashford borough, Kent (OS grid ref TR0644).
- 12 A number of places in England:; A hamlet in Albury parish, Guildford borough, Surrey (OS grid ref TQ0646).
- 13 A number of places in England:; A hamlet in Witley parish, Waverley borough, Surrey (OS grid ref SU9338).
- 14 A hamlet in Llanddowror community, Carmarthenshire, Wales (OS grid ref SN2609).
Example
"His pride would not brook such insults."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "brook"?
Common synonyms include: creek, stream, abide, abide, abide with, accept.
How do you use "brook" in a sentence?
His pride would not brook such insults.
How do you pronounce "brook"?
Pronounced /bɹʊk/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English brouken (“to use, enjoy”), from Old English brūcan (“to enjoy, brook, use, possess, partake of, spend”), from Proto-West Germanic *brūkan, from Proto-Germanic *brūkaną (“to enjoy, use”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰruHg- (“to enjoy”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian bruke (“to need”), Dutch bruiken (“to use”), German Low German bruken (“to need”), German brauchen (“to need”), Swedish bruka (“to use”), Icelandic brúka (“to use”).
Etymology 2
From Middle English brook, from Old English brōc (“brook; stream; torrent”), from Proto-West Germanic *brōk (“stream”).
Etymology 3
* As an English surname, from the noun brook. * As a north German surname, from Low German Brook (“swamp, marsh”), related to the above. * As a Dutch surname, Americanized from Broek, from broek, also related to the above. * As a Jewish and German surname, Americanized from Bruck, Bruch (from Bruch (“wetland, marsh”)).