: the portion of the vertebrate central nervous system enclosed in the skull and continuous with the spinal cord through the foramen magnum that is composed of neurons and supporting and nutritive structures (such as glia) and that integrates sensory information from inside and outside the body in controlling autonomic function (such as heartbeat and respiration), in coordinating and directing correlated motor responses, and in the process of learning compare forebrain, hindbrain, midbrain
b
: a nervous center in invertebrates comparable in position and function to the vertebrate brain
Noun
Scientists are learning more about how the human brain works.
The left and right sides of the brain have different functions.
The other children always teased him about being such a brain. Verb
The tree limb fell and nearly brained me.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The film homes in on the relationship between a military engineer (Lawrence) recovering from the effects of a severe brain injury and an auto repair shop mechanic (Henry) living with the guilt and the physical aftereffects of a car accident.—Nardos Haile, Anchorage Daily News, 25 Jan. 2023 The film homes in on the relationship between a military engineer (Lawrence) recovering from the effects of a severe brain injury and an auto repair shop mechanic (Henry) living with the guilt and the physical aftereffects of a car accident.—Nardos Haile, ajc, 24 Jan. 2023 Hull noted in the 2019 documents the following injuries for the Enzo - head trauma, closed head trauma, brain injury, hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, multiple retinal hemorrhages and multiple contusions to the head and body.—Carol Robinson | Crobinson@al.com, al, 24 Jan. 2023 Judy Guinn, a pediatrician who specializes in child abuse cases, examined the infant and diagnosed the child with a brain injury, hemorrhaging, rib fractures, a liver laceration, bruising to the chest and other injuries.—Ashley Luthern, Journal Sentinel, 20 Jan. 2023 The human steamroller who spent his last few years suffering from dementia likely caused by a traumatic brain injury summoned his faculties to honor one of his successors.—Los Angeles Times, 20 Jan. 2023 Cayden Winstead's life has been anything but easy since suffering a severe, life-threatening brain injury last February.—Ana Rocío Álvarez Bríñez, The Courier-Journal, 18 Jan. 2023 Ma, 61, suffered a traumatic brain injury from the 2021 attack and never regained consciousness.—Chantal Da Silva, NBC News, 13 Jan. 2023 Today, the 2-year-old breathes with the aid of a tracheostomy and ventilator as a result of a brain injury.—Ashley R. Williams, USA TODAY, 12 Jan. 2023
Verb
Internet connections can be wireless, so why shouldn’t brain medicine be?—Elizabeth Preston, Discover Magazine, 2 Dec. 2015 The cancer initiative is personal for Biden, who lost his son Beau Biden to brain cancer in 2015.—Alexander Thompson, BostonGlobe.com, 11 Sep. 2022 The man who could brain Mr. Lingk with Rusty’s ashes, or the one who could harm and tie up a helpless old lady, would almost certainly be game for something that nasty.—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 9 Aug. 2022 This can help alleviate back and neck stress and give your eyes and brain a break from the screen.—Alexa Mikhail, Fortune, 28 July 2022 They are linked to brain developmental problems in infants and cancer.—Katy Stech Ferek, WSJ, 31 Jan. 2022 How will brain stimulation become accessible to all the patients who need it, given how expensive and invasive some treatments are?—Isabella Cueto, STAT, 14 Jan. 2022 The researchers contend that this study marks the first time that a machine-learning algorithm has been matched to brain data to explain the workings of a high-level cognitive task.—Anna Blaustein, Scientific American, 26 Oct. 2021 Arguably, achieving universal health care and higher education and addressing the nation’s aging water pipe infrastructure (which has yielded a modern-day lead crisis) could be expected to make similar contributions to brain health across decades.—Daniel R. George, Scientific American, 25 Aug. 2021 See More
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'brain.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Word History
Etymology
Noun
Middle English, from Old English brægen; akin to Middle Low German bregen brain, and perhaps to Greek brechmos front part of the head
First Known Use
Noun
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
: the portion of the central nervous system of vertebrate animals that is the organ of thought and the central control point for the nervous system, is enclosed within the skull, and is continuous with the spinal cord
b
: the main nervous center in an invertebrate animal
: the portion of the vertebrate central nervous system enclosed in the skull and continuous with the spinal cord through the foramen magnum that is composed of neurons and supporting and nutritive structures (as glia) and that integrates sensory information from inside and outside the body in controlling autonomic function (as heartbeat and respiration), in coordinating and directing correlated motor responses, and in the process of learning see forebrain, hindbrain, midbrain
2
: a nervous center in invertebrates comparable in position and function to the vertebrate brain
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