1
: a large coarse fern
especially
: a nearly cosmopolitan brake (Pteridium aquilinum) found in most tropical and temperate regions
2
: a growth of brakes
brech·an
ˈbreḵən
variants
or less commonly bracken
plural -s
: a plaid of the Scottish Highlands
Examples of bracken in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Jen Murphy, Robb Report, 4 Apr. 2026
As tall as a man and immersed in a sea of bracken, it is now covered in moss and disappears from sight amid summertime growth, only to reëmerge when winter arrives.
—Rebecca Mead, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026
This transverse section of the stem of bracken fern could be a cartoonist’s impression of a talking...stem of bracken fern.
—Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes, 20 Oct. 2024
Intensive agricultural usage, long promoted by government funding, gives way to the rampant spread of bracken — a type of fern that, left to its own devices, grows upwards of six feet, choking out any other life.
—Tom Vanderbilt, Travel + Leisure, 25 June 2024
Come morning, all this would be vines, bracken, and bears.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 5 Nov. 2023
The few shards of sunlight that pierce the leaf canopy cast glitter-ball shapes on the bracken.
—Stephen Humphries, The Christian Science Monitor, 24 Aug. 2023
Habitats include bracken grassland, oak savanna and sand prairies.
—Christopher Kuhagen, Journal Sentinel, 6 June 2023
In a statement, Cornwall Archaeological Unit senior archaeologist Peter Dudley, said that 13 volunteers gave 111 hours of their time to clear the bracken and scrub that obscured the henge.
—Jane Recker, Smithsonian Magazine, 20 May 2022
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Noun
The couple’s ambitious 200-year vision involves reviving the ecology through peat restoration, bracken rolling, and deer management, but also reenergizing rural communities by creating opportunities through tourism.
—Jen Murphy, Robb Report, 4 Apr. 2026
As tall as a man and immersed in a sea of bracken, it is now covered in moss and disappears from sight amid summertime growth, only to reëmerge when winter arrives.
—Rebecca Mead, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026
This transverse section of the stem of bracken fern could be a cartoonist’s impression of a talking...stem of bracken fern.
—Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes, 20 Oct. 2024
Intensive agricultural usage, long promoted by government funding, gives way to the rampant spread of bracken — a type of fern that, left to its own devices, grows upwards of six feet, choking out any other life.
—Tom Vanderbilt, Travel + Leisure, 25 June 2024
Come morning, all this would be vines, bracken, and bears.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 5 Nov. 2023
The few shards of sunlight that pierce the leaf canopy cast glitter-ball shapes on the bracken.
—Stephen Humphries, The Christian Science Monitor, 24 Aug. 2023
Habitats include bracken grassland, oak savanna and sand prairies.
—Christopher Kuhagen, Journal Sentinel, 6 June 2023
In a statement, Cornwall Archaeological Unit senior archaeologist Peter Dudley, said that 13 volunteers gave 111 hours of their time to clear the bracken and scrub that obscured the henge.
—Jane Recker, Smithsonian Magazine, 20 May 2022
Cite this Entry
“Bracken.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bracken. Accessed 19 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
bracken
noun
brack·en
ˈbrak-ən 
: a large coarse branching fern
also
: a growth of such ferns
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