brisk

1 of 2

adjective

1
: keenly alert : lively
a brisk old lady with no nonsense about herJean Stafford
2
a
: pleasingly tangy
brisk tea
b
: fresh, invigorating
a brisk autumn day
3
: sharp in tone or manner
was very brisk on the phone
4
a
: energetic, quick
took a brisk walk
at a brisk pace
b
: marked by much activity
business was brisk
briskly adverb
briskness noun

brisk

2 of 2

verb

brisked; brisking; brisks

transitive verb

: to make animated, energetic, or marked by much activity : to make brisk

intransitive verb

: to become brisk
usually used with up
business brisked up

Examples of brisk in a Sentence

Adjective She answered the phone in a brisk voice. They went for a brisk walk in the woods. She walked at a brisk pace. Business is brisk at the store. There is a brisk market in old movie posters.
Recent Examples on the Web
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Adjective
On a brisk February evening in 2006, around a hundred people gathered in the venerable Koreatown watering hole HMS Bounty to pay their last respects to Los Angeles’ historic Ambassador Hotel. Michael Schneider, Variety, 12 Oct. 2025 Playing there in October, Nadal, Świątek and their foes had to reckon with brisk winds, gray skies and plummeting thermometers. Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 11 Oct. 2025 October 10, 2025 Exactly one year ago, on a brisk October evening, a few hundred people gathered on a stretch of sidewalk on Grand Street in Manhattan’s Chinatown, taking in a performance by the rollicking violinist Adrian Jusdanis of the band New Thousand. Grace Edquist, Vogue, 10 Oct. 2025 The staff is brisk, used to locals ordering with a shorthand as precise as Philly cheesesteak lingo, and the souvlaki itself is unlike anywhere else in Athens—simple, spicy, smoky, and closer to kebab than the standard style. Katherine Whittaker, Saveur, 9 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for brisk

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

probably modification of Middle French brusque

Verb

verbal derivative of brisk entry 1

First Known Use

Adjective

1560, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1598, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Time Traveler
The first known use of brisk was in 1560

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Brisk.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/brisk. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025.

Kids Definition

brisk

adjective
ˈbrisk
1
: very active or alert : lively
2
: very refreshing
brisk autumn weather
3
: energetic, quick
a brisk pace
briskly adverb
briskness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on brisk

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