Brave | Webster's Dictionary (1865)

Brāve, a.

adjective

a. [Fr. brave, valiant, good, well-dressed, Pr. breu, f. brava, hard, wicked, brave, Sp. & Pg. bravo, valiant, strenuous, fierce, rude, sumptuous, fine, It. bravo, courageous, O. It., tempestuous. Sp. brava, a heavy swell of the sea, braveza, bravery, valor, fury of the elements, bravio, fierce, coarse, O. Sp. braviar, to roar. This word seems to be of Celtic origin, though its primitive form is not clearly preserved in the modern Celtic dialects. Cf. W. braw, terror, fright, brau, frank, ready, Armor. braō, brav, fine, agreeable, pretty, braga, to strut, Ir. & Gael. breo, fire, flame.]

Sense 1. Of noble or admirable courage; uniting boldness with generosity and dignity; bold; daring; intrepid; fearless.

The star-spangled banner, O, long may it wave O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave. F. S. Key.

Sense 2. Gallant; lofty; excellent; beautiful; grand; noble; dignified.

Iron is a brave commodity where wood aboundeth. Bacon.

It being a brave day, I walked to Whitehall. Pepys.

Sense 3. Gaudy; showy in dress. [Obs.]

For I have gold, and therefore will be brave. In silks I'll rattle it of every color. Greene.

Synonyms—Courageous; gallant; daring; valiant; valorous; bold; heroic; intrepid; fearless; dauntless; magnanimous; high-spirited. See GALLANT.

Brāve, n.

noun

n. 1. A brave person; one who is bold or daring; specifically, an Indian warrior.

Sense 2. A hector; a bully; a man daring beyond discretion or decency.

Hot braves like thee may fight. Dryden.

Sense 3. A boast; a challenge; a defiance. [Obs.]

*Demetrius, thou dost overween in all, And so in this, to bear me down with braves. Shak.*

Brāve, v. t.

verbtransitive

v. t. [imp. & p. p. BRAVED; p. pr. & vb. n. BRAVING.]

Sense 1. To encounter with courage and fortitude; to set at defiance; to defy; to challenge; to dare.

The rock that braves the tempest. Dryden.

Sense 2. To adorn; to make fine or showy. [Obs.]

Thou hast braved many men [made them fine, being said to a tailor]; brave not me; I'll neither be faced nor braved. Shak.