brackish

adjective

brack·​ish ˈbra-kish How to pronounce brackish (audio)
1
: somewhat salty
brackish water
2
a
: not appealing to the taste
brackish tea
b
: repulsive
a brackish personality
brackishness noun

Did you know?

When the word brackish first appeared in English in the 1500s, it simply meant "salty," as did its Dutch parent brak. (English speakers also adopted the synonymous brack from the same source but it gets very little use.) Then, as now, brackish was used to describe water that was a mixture of saltwater and freshwater, such as one encounters where a river meets the sea. Since that time, however, brackish has developed the additional meanings of "unpalatable" and "repulsive," presumably because of the oozy, mucky, and sometimes stinky (or stinkyish, if you prefer)—not just salty—qualities of coastal estuaries and swamps.

Examples of brackish in a Sentence

the office coffee is often some brackish brew that's been sitting around for a couple of hours the river becomes brackish as we approach the tidemark
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Photograph: Oregon State University A new species of bacteria that functions like electrical wiring has recently been discovered on a brackish beach in Oregon. Ritsuko Kawai, Wired News, 5 May 2025 Because of pollution, depletion, and seepage of water from the sea, the groundwater was of poor quality—brackish and salty, with a high level of chemicals. Claudine Ebeid, The Atlantic, 6 Feb. 2025 Cypress trees with pleated skirt-like roots grow deep into the brackish water of the bayous that make up the preserve, home to alligators, snakes, birds, and fish. Cynthia Drake, Southern Living, 10 Apr. 2025 Dark long-body snake eels live in brackish water where the Mekong River meets the South China Sea. Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 19 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for brackish

Word History

Etymology

Dutch brac salty; akin to Middle Low German brac salty

First Known Use

circa 1552, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of brackish was circa 1552

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Cite this Entry

“Brackish.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/brackish. Accessed 24 May. 2025.

Kids Definition

brackish

adjective
brack·​ish ˈbrak-ish How to pronounce brackish (audio)
: somewhat salty
brackish water

More from Merriam-Webster on brackish

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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