often attributive
1
plural bricks or brick
: a handy-sized unit of building or paving material typically being rectangular and about 2¹/₄ × 3³/₄ × 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
6
: a badly missed shot in basketball
he threw up a brick
bricked; bricking; bricks
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
Jonathan Zittrain3
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
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 WebDorian Smith-Garcia, Parents, 4 Apr. 2024
According to legend, at one point Lennon was chauffeured over to McCartney’s London home and tossed a brick through his front window.
—Jordan Runtagh, Peoplemag, 29 Mar. 2024
It was designed so water would flow from several small pipes, over a brick design, and into a drain below.
—Michael Wells, Kansas City Star, 27 Mar. 2024
Twyla constructed a makeshift land bridge out of bricks to walk dry from her backdoor to her shed.
—Jaime Moore-Carrillo, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 26 Mar. 2024
The neighborhood is known for green spaces and quiet residential streets with attractive Victorian and Edwardian brick homes, as well as famous residents including author Zadie Smith and actor Daniel Craig.
—Sarah Rappaport, Fortune Europe, 26 Mar. 2024
Handsome double-wide brick buildings line the Herengracht’s banks, their corniced façades reflected on the water’s surface.
—Kyle Chayka, The New Yorker, 25 Mar. 2024
Wong says of his hefty torch, which replaced the meager cigarette and barbecue lighters of years past, before reaching into a solid brick oven to ignite handfuls of paper representing money into a blaze that sent ashes floating out.
—Michael Laris, Washington Post, 25 Mar. 2024
After the building burned down in 1897, the Hayden family constructed a brick building in its place.
—Jenna Thompson, Kansas City Star, 25 Mar. 2024
Sean Keeler, The Denver Post, 31 Jan. 2024
To the east in Bossier Parish, several sheriff’s deputies guarded the Johnson family’s stucco and brick two-story home.
—Molly Hennessy-Fiske, Washington Post, 29 Oct. 2023
Yum China Holdings, which owns KFC and Pizza Hut, plans to use AI to better connect online orders to brick and mortar stores.
—Hanna Zakharenko, Washington Post, 24 Aug. 2023
Alternately scalding and caressing the darkness, Curran’s designs glare across and define a space that is empty but for three ladders and five vertical lighting bars across the Almeida Theatre’s signature curved, brick back wall.
—David Benedict, Variety, 15 June 2023
For a half, the double-teaming worked, the Lakers forcing the ball out of his hands and to his teammates, who proceeded to brick open three-point try after open three-point try.
—Dan Woike, Los Angeles Times, 25 Dec. 2022
But the role of the store continues to evolve dramatically and brick-and-mortar locations that cannot demonstrate a clear reason for being are becoming increasingly irrelevant (see moderate department stores, Bed, Bath & Beyond, et al).
—Steve Dennis, Forbes, 25 Jan. 2023
From inside the gates, the N.I.H. looks like any suburban college campus: rolling green hills, a busy shuttle bus, a smattering of buildings, mainly brick, with no especially coherent architectural theme.
—Beverly Gage, The New Yorker, 23 Jan. 2023
Burly backup center Robin Lopez checked in to give Cleveland an extra rebounder, as Mitchell was planning to intentionally brick the next freebie.
—Chris Fedor, cleveland, 3 Jan. 2023
Noun
Whether your kids prefer making their own designs or following the instructions, there are endless possibilities for creative play with the popular building bricks.
—Dorian Smith-Garcia, Parents, 4 Apr. 2024
According to legend, at one point Lennon was chauffeured over to McCartney’s London home and tossed a brick through his front window.
—Jordan Runtagh, Peoplemag, 29 Mar. 2024
It was designed so water would flow from several small pipes, over a brick design, and into a drain below.
—Michael Wells, Kansas City Star, 27 Mar. 2024
Twyla constructed a makeshift land bridge out of bricks to walk dry from her backdoor to her shed.
—Jaime Moore-Carrillo, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 26 Mar. 2024
The neighborhood is known for green spaces and quiet residential streets with attractive Victorian and Edwardian brick homes, as well as famous residents including author Zadie Smith and actor Daniel Craig.
—Sarah Rappaport, Fortune Europe, 26 Mar. 2024
Handsome double-wide brick buildings line the Herengracht’s banks, their corniced façades reflected on the water’s surface.
—Kyle Chayka, The New Yorker, 25 Mar. 2024
Wong says of his hefty torch, which replaced the meager cigarette and barbecue lighters of years past, before reaching into a solid brick oven to ignite handfuls of paper representing money into a blaze that sent ashes floating out.
—Michael Laris, Washington Post, 25 Mar. 2024
After the building burned down in 1897, the Hayden family constructed a brick building in its place.
—Jenna Thompson, Kansas City Star, 25 Mar. 2024
Verb
The best weapon against Bluto Ball is to keep your head, box out, avoid getting baited and let The Undertaker methodically brick himself into an early grave.
—Sean Keeler, The Denver Post, 31 Jan. 2024
To the east in Bossier Parish, several sheriff’s deputies guarded the Johnson family’s stucco and brick two-story home.
—Molly Hennessy-Fiske, Washington Post, 29 Oct. 2023
Yum China Holdings, which owns KFC and Pizza Hut, plans to use AI to better connect online orders to brick and mortar stores.
—Hanna Zakharenko, Washington Post, 24 Aug. 2023
Alternately scalding and caressing the darkness, Curran’s designs glare across and define a space that is empty but for three ladders and five vertical lighting bars across the Almeida Theatre’s signature curved, brick back wall.
—David Benedict, Variety, 15 June 2023
For a half, the double-teaming worked, the Lakers forcing the ball out of his hands and to his teammates, who proceeded to brick open three-point try after open three-point try.
—Dan Woike, Los Angeles Times, 25 Dec. 2022
But the role of the store continues to evolve dramatically and brick-and-mortar locations that cannot demonstrate a clear reason for being are becoming increasingly irrelevant (see moderate department stores, Bed, Bath & Beyond, et al).
—Steve Dennis, Forbes, 25 Jan. 2023
From inside the gates, the N.I.H. looks like any suburban college campus: rolling green hills, a busy shuttle bus, a smattering of buildings, mainly brick, with no especially coherent architectural theme.
—Beverly Gage, The New Yorker, 23 Jan. 2023
Burly backup center Robin Lopez checked in to give Cleveland an extra rebounder, as Mitchell was planning to intentionally brick the next freebie.
—Chris Fedor, cleveland, 3 Jan. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'brick.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near brick
Cite this Entry
“Brick.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/brick. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
brick
1 of 2 noun1
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 verb1
: to close, face, or pave with bricks
2
: to cause (an electronic device) to become nonfunctional (as by damage, hacking, or software changes)
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share