brook
/bruk/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun:
- A small, natural freshwater stream, typically smaller than a river and often feeding into a larger river or body of water.
Verb:
- To tolerate or endure something unpleasant or disagreeable. This usage is formal and often used in negative contexts or to indicate a strong unwillingness to accept.
Examples
Noun:
- We followed the babbling brook through the forest.
- The children loved to catch frogs in the shallow brook.
Verb:
- She would not brook any interference in her personal affairs.
- His pride could not brook such a public insult.
Advanced Usage
- "brook no...": This is a common formal construction meaning "to not tolerate something at all."
- The principal brooks no nonsense from the students.
- This delicate situation brooks no delay.
Variants and Related Words
- Stream (n): A general term for a small, flowing body of water. (A brook is a type of stream.)
- Creek (n): Similar to a brook; a small stream. (Usage can vary regionally.)
- Tolerate (v): A more common synonym for the verb form of "brook."
- Endure (v): To suffer something painful or difficult patiently.
Synonyms
- Noun: Stream, creek, rivulet, runnel, rill.
- Verb: Tolerate, endure, bear, stand, abide, stomach, countenance.
Phrasal Verbs
(This word does not commonly form phrasal verbs.)
Related Idioms
- "To brook no argument/opposition/delay": A formal idiom meaning to absolutely not allow or accept something.
- The king brooked no opposition to his rule.
- The emergency brooks no delay; we must act now.
Noun
- a natural stream of water smaller than a river (and often a tributary of a river)
- the creek dried up every summer
Verb
- put up with something or somebody unpleasant
- I cannot bear his constant criticism
- The new secretary had to endure a lot of unprofessional remarks
- he learned to tolerate the heat
- She stuck out two years in a miserable marriage