bromide

noun

bro·​mide ˈbrō-ˌmīd 

1

: a binary compound of bromine with another element or a radical including some (such as potassium bromide) used as sedatives

2

a

: a commonplace or tiresome person : bore

b

: a commonplace or hackneyed statement or notion

Did you know?

A bromide is a statement so worn and trite as to be ineffective when it’s offered to make someone feel better. Before the sigh-inducing type, though, bromides were most familiar in compounds like potassium bromide, used in the late 19th century as a sedative to treat everything from epilepsy to sleeplessness. (The chemical element bromine had been discovered in 1826.) Such compounds fell from use with the invention of barbiturates in the early 20th century, around the same time that the word bromide started to be applied to anything or anyone dull enough to make one drowsy.

Synonyms of bromide

• cliché
• chestnut
• platitude
• banality
• truism
• commonplace
• shibboleth
• trope

Examples of bromide in a Sentence

His speech had nothing more to offer than the usual bromides about how everyone needs to work together.

a newspaper editorial offering the timeworn bromide that people should settle their differences peacefully

Recent Examples on the Web

Exposure to chemical warfare agents—such as nerve gas—or to pyridostigmine bromide, a drug given to soldiers as a preventive measure against chemical attacks, may have played a role. —Aliss Higham, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Oct. 2025

There is an outright rejection of bromides that would give us some conclusion of reassurance. —Richard Newby, HollywoodReporter, 30 Sep. 2025

Blood testing showed a bromide level that was hundreds of times above normal. —Dhruv Khullar, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025

However, swapping out classic sodium chloride for sodium bromide is a solid way to give yourself acne, involuntary muscle spasms, and paranoid psychosis. —Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 14 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1830, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing bromide

• ethidium bromide
• hydrogen bromide
• methyl bromide
• potassium bromide
• pyridostigmine bromide
• silver bromide

Rhymes for bromide

• abide
• allied
• applied
• aside
• astride
• azide
• backside
• bankside
• bastide
• bayside
• bedside
• belied

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Kids Definition

bromide

noun

bro·​mide ˈbrō-ˌmīd 

: any of various compounds of bromine with another element or a chemical group including some used as sedatives

Medical Definition

bromide

noun

bro·​mide ˈbrō-ˌmīd 

1

: a binary compound of bromine with another element or a radical including some (as potassium bromide) used as sedatives

2

: a dose of bromide taken usually as a sedative