brick

1 of 2

noun

ˈbrik 

often attributive

1

plural bricks or brick : a handy-sized unit of building or paving material typically being rectangular and about 2¼ × 3¾ × 8 inches (57 × 95 × 203 millimeters) and made of moist clay hardened by heat

2

: a good-hearted person

3

: a rectangular compressed mass (as of ice cream)

4

: a semisoft cheese with numerous small holes, smooth texture, and often mild flavor

5

: gaffe, blunder

—used especially in the phrase drop a brick

6

: a badly missed shot in basketball

he threw up a brick

see also:

built like a brick shithouse

brick

2 of 2

verb

bricked; bricking; bricks

transitive verb

1

: to close, face, or pave with bricks

—usually used with up, in, or over

brick up a doorway

brick over an opening

2

: to render (an electronic device, such as a smartphone) nonfunctional (as by accidental damage, malicious hacking, or software changes)

… those who dared hack the phone to add features … risked having it "bricked"—completely and permanently disabled—on the next automatic update …

—Jonathan Zittrain

3

basketball, informal : to miss (a shot) very badly : to throw up a brick on (a shot) (see brick entry 1 sense 6)

brick a free throw

Synonyms of brick

Noun

• mistake
• error
• blunder

Examples of brick in a Sentence

Noun

a house made of brick

a brick of ice cream

children playing with wooden bricks

He has been an absolute brick.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Roof shingles then need to be removed; brick fireplaces and chimneys have to be dismantled, their pieces carefully numbered for reconstruction later; and the entire structure must be sliced into road-ready sections like a loaf of bread. — Nicola Twilley, New Yorker, 27 Aug. 2026

The two-family home, designed by the Swiss architect Inès Lamunière, with a severe white stucco and glass façade, highlighter-orange doors, and twisting form, stood out in a neighborhood of 19th-century brownstones and multifamily brick buildings. — Matthew Sedacca, Curbed, 27 Aug. 2026

Verb

Russ could brick a wild bank shot, cough up the ball in crunch time and make fans want to launch their remotes through the TV. — Alejandro Avila Outkick, FOXNews.com, 12 Aug. 2026

The biggest problem at first was reliability and fixability, as consumers worried that batteries would die and brick their vehicles. — Erik Shilling, Robb Report, 24 Feb. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English bryke, from Middle Dutch bricke

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1592, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing brick

• brick-and-mortar
• brick red
• brick up
• brick wall
• clinker brick
• drop a brick

Rhymes for brick

• bick
• chick
• click
• fick
• flick
• hick
• kick
• knick
• lick
• mic
• nick
• pic

Kids Definition

brick

1 of 2 noun

ˈbrik 

1

a

plural bricks or brick : a building or paving material made from clay molded into blocks and baked

b

: a block made of brick

2

: a block shaped like a brick

a brick of ice cream

3

: a semisoft mild-flavored cheese

4

: a badly missed shot in basketball

brick

2 of 2 verb

1

: to close, face, or pave with bricks

2

: to cause (an electronic device) to become nonfunctional (as by damage, hacking, or software changes)