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bracket

bracket [ brákit ]

noun (plural brackets)

Definition:

1. printing upright curved punctuation mark: one of a pair of shallow, curved signs, ( ), used to enclose an explanatory word or comment and distinguish it from the sentence in which it occurs
North American term parenthesis ( often used in the plural )

2. North America printing
Same as square bracket

3. printing paired punctuation mark: any of the set of signs used in pairs to separate words from surrounding text, including the angle bracket and the brace

4. group within set limits: a section of the population that falls within particular defined limits

taxpayers in the £50,000 to £70,000 bracket

5. L-shaped structure on wall: an L-shaped structure that is fixed to a wall to hold up something such as a shelf or speaker

6. type of shelf: a shelf with an integral part that fixes to the wall as its support and can sometimes be swivelled

This TV bracket is too low.

transitive verb (3rd person present singular brackets, present participle bracketing, past and past participle bracketed)

Definition:

1. put something inside brackets: to put something, especially text or a mathematical equation, inside brackets

2. support something with brackets: to fix brackets to something, especially a wall, or support something with brackets

3. group people or things together: to group or class people or things together, usually because they are similar in some way

The two shows, both about 30-something women, will inevitably be bracketed together.

[Late 16th century. Perhaps < French braguette 'codpiece' (because of the shape) < Latin bracae 'breeches']

bracketing noun

Word Usage


	Brackets are used around text that adds extra information to what has gone before: She was suffering from rubella (German measles).The noun 'dessert' (with a double 's') is pronounced the same as the verb 'desert'.He read an article on GM (genetically modified) crops. The information within the brackets can usually be omitted without affecting the structure of the sentence. Note that there should be no punctuation directly before the opening bracket in such cases. Brackets are also used around optional or alternative material: Please write your forename(s) in full, or to separate something such as a number or symbol from the surrounding text: I disagree with the proposal, (a) because it is too expensive and (b) because it is unlikely to be effective in the long term. See also square bracket.

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