bro

noun

ˈbrō 

plural bros

1

informal : brother

… Tommy has a worldview that's larger than his baby bro's.

—Leah Rozen

2

US slang

a

: a male friend

hanging out with his bros

One quirky edge the Olympics haven't yet sanded away is the habit of extreme athletes to stick together. Like, no matter where we're from, we're all bros. That kind of thing.

—Devin Gordon et al.

b

—used as a friendly way of addressing a man or boy

Hey, bro, what's up?

Catch you later, bro.

c

: a young male who is part of a group of similar male friends stereotypically characterized as hearty, athletic, self-confident, party-loving, etc.

The recent season of "Project Greenlight," on HBO, made explicit how resistant to race talk Hollywood can be, a stifling culture of bros bonding with mirror versions of themselves.

—Emily Nussbaum

These were nerds who could pass for bros on a dorm-room sofa …

—Ben McGrath

—often used before another noun

It's the continuation of the bro culture. In my experience, in this world right now, white guys have an advantage. In their training, they've been given access and tools that I haven't. White men get behind each other and empower themselves.

—Tanya Holland

Examples of bro in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Shayne chose his bro Biggy over his love interest Ally in that vase-shattering challenge? —Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine, 20 June 2025

TechCrunch founder turned crypto bro Michael Arrington once raved for twenty minutes to me at an airport about the genius of Gary Shteyngart. —Literary Hub, 26 June 2025

And the President’s feckless tech bros can arbitrarily withhold billions in federal support for everything from cancer research to hurricane tracking. —Ron Cunningham, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 June 2025

Though Jonas is most well-known for his part in the music trio The Jonas Brothers — alongside older bros Joe and Kevin — he’s certainly made the rounds on stage and screen. —Jami Ganz, New York Daily News, 5 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

by alteration

First Known Use

circa 1530, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing bro

• bro-ey

Rhymes for bro

• beau
• beaux
• blow
• boe
• coe
• crow
• doe
• doh
• dough
• eau
• eaux
• faux

Kids Definition

bro

noun

ˈbrō 

1

informal : brother sense 1

2

slang : brother sense 3