brit
To break in pieces; divideTo break in pieces; divide.
» Brits tend to understate things.
Meaning
4 senses(transitive)To break in pieces; divide.
(transitive)To bruise; indent.
(intransitive)To fall out or shatter (as overripe hops or grain).
(dialectal, intransitive)To fade away; alter.
Examples
6 sentencesBrits tend to understate things.
Caeser defeated the Brits in many battles.
deCaesar besiegte die Briten in vielen Schlachten. — Esperantostern
I met two foreigners: a Canadian and a Brit.
deIch habe zwei Ausländer getroffen: einen Kanadier und einen Briten. — Pfirsichbaeumchen
The Brits were the Americans of the 19th century, so to speak.
deDie Briten waren sozusagen die Amerikaner des 19. Jahrhunderts. — Pfirsichbaeumchen
The Brits now say they have great cooks, but they can't even make a sandwich anymore.
Origin
From Middle English brytten, brutten, from Old English brittian, bryttian (“to divide, disFrom Middle English brytten, brutten, from Old English brittian, bryttian (“to divide, dispense, distribute, rule over, possess, enjoy the use of”), from Proto-Germanic *brutjaną (“to break, divide”), from Proto-Germanic *breutaną (“to destroy, crush, break”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrewd- (“to break”). Cognate with Icelandic brytja (“to chop up, break in pieces, slaughter”), Swedish bryta (“to break, fracture, cut off”), Danish bryde (“to break”), and outside the Germanic family with Albanian brydh (“to make crumbly, friable, soft”). Related to Old English brytta (“dispenser, giver, author, governor, prince”), Old English brēotan (“to break in pieces, hew down, demolish, destroy, kill”).
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Forms
brits, britting, britted, brittedWord family
2 related wordsLessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, regular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle