braces 1 of 2

noun

plural of brace
1
as in supports
a structure that holds up or serves as a foundation for something else wore a brace for the injured knee

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2
as in pairs
two things of the same or similar kind that match or are considered together bagged a brace of pheasants

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braces

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of brace
1
as in stimulates
to give life, vigor, or spirit to the pep talk braced the team up for the second half

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in carries
to hold up or serve as a foundation for several boards braced the wall

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3
as in fortifies
to prepare (oneself) mentally or emotionally she braced herself for the job interview

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of braces
Noun
Strnad keeps thumb braces in the case because the training staff would occasionally accidentally throw them out while cleaning the locker room. — Sam Jane, Denver Post, 29 Sep. 2026 Shelton, 23, has become a regular at Washington Spirit games, watching Rodman score braces against Seattle Reign last September and Houston Dash in July. — Amelie Claydon, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026 Lumbar support braces designed to provide relief from chronic low back pain may not be as effective as people have been led to believe, with scientists finding that recommendations are based on low-quality evidence. — New Atlas, 6 Sep. 2026 Two South Florida men were sentenced to federal prison for their roles in a nearly $35 million health care scam after billing Medicare for thousands of orthotic braces sent to beneficiaries who did not need them. — Susannah Bryan, Sun Sentinel, 6 Sep. 2026 The service Friendly and welcoming, the restaurant staff wear bright pink braces over their crisp white shirts and seem to remember all of the regular guests. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 3 Sep. 2026 Sara, who is nearing her 18th birthday, walks with an arm crutch and wears braces. — Toria Sheffield, PEOPLE, 31 Aug. 2026 Advertised as more comfortable and quicker than traditional braces, the treatment has helped people who avoided braces for cosmetic and other reasons. — Alexandra Frost, USA Today, 26 Aug. 2026 Here, Varghese coordinates their physical therapy, builds their braces, fabricates their prostheses, and operates on their limbs, should things come to that. — Eli Cahan, Rolling Stone, 21 Aug. 2026
Verb
Top stories Fires Crews are battling a fire in Malibu as SoCal braces for another day of Santa Ana winds. — Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026 This year’s event was as much about celebration as collaboration, defined by a spirit of togetherness for an industry that braces for the uncertain road ahead. — Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 13 Oct. 2026 As the state braces for tough budget years, some questioned whether there would be an appetite to invest money in a decades-long experiment. — Jack Harvel, Kansas City Star, 8 Oct. 2026 But as Europe braces for a double round of art fairs—Frieze in London from October 14–18, followed by Art Basel Paris from October 21–25—London is having something of a resurgence, even as Paris keeps its appeal. — Devorah Lauter, ARTnews.com, 7 Oct. 2026 The protest came as the BBC braces to announce further cuts next week, with director general Matt Brittin planning to address staff in a Town Hall on Wednesday, expected to be chaired by Radio 4 Today show host Anna Foster. — Jake Kanter, Deadline, 2 Oct. 2026 Newsom spoke with European Union Climate Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra on Tuesday during New York’s Climate Week, a day after declaring a state of emergency as California braces for one of the strongest storms on record. — Lia Russell, Sacbee.com, 22 Sep. 2026 These studies compared back support braces either on their own, with no other interventions, or their use in conjunction with other pain management recommendations such as physical activity and/or medication. — New Atlas, 6 Sep. 2026 Tropical Storm Moke is making its closest approach to Hawaii as the state braces for its second tropical threat in less than a week after deadly Hurricane Lala tore through parts of the islands. — Tyler Ory, CNN Money, 23 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for braces
  1. supports
  2. pairs
  3. stimulates
  4. carries
  5. fortifies
  6. reinforcements
  7. couples
  8. spikes
Noun
  • Whatever marks that remain after pulling the supports away and curing the parts are easily ground or sanded away.
    — Michael Lydick, PC Magazine, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The mural is painted directly onto the building’s walls, ceiling, and structural supports, so the art literally comes with the listing (or vice versa).
    — Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of supports
Noun
  • On the other, evidence suggests this pair of habitual time-wasters were commonly found on the floor, running laughter through a Yamaha SPX90 effects processor for kicks and strumming the same note for 40-odd minutes.
    — Gabriel Szatan, Pitchfork, 18 Oct. 2026
  • Once the animals had learned to associate each of the six scents with a particular reward location, researchers started swapping the scent-location pairs.
    — Sean Mccabe, Hartford Courant, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of pairs
Verb
  • The glasses project light onto 378 pixels in the implant, which converts those light patterns into an electrical current that stimulates the retina’s bipolar cells.
    — Erica Sweeney, Time, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Observation generates hypotheses; hypotheses lead to anatomical investigation; anatomy stimulates physiological questions; physiology eventually produces clinical trials.
    — Subramaniam C. Krishnan, STAT, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of stimulates
Verb
  • Brown ran for 115 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries and added a scoring pass.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Pettaway finished with 119 yards rushing on 14 carries that included a 12-yard touchdown run.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of carries
Verb
  • The additional financing fortifies its position as one of two investors alongside the Ellison family controlling Paramount’s voting stock.
    — Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 6 Oct. 2026
  • The addition of cotton and raw material-producing countries like Egypt and Ethiopia further fortifies a strong sourcing platform that already includes manufacturing giants India and China.
    — Mayu Saini, Footwear News, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of fortifies
Noun
  • Using wooden planks and sandbags, Long Beach City work crews earlier this month had patched up holes in the boardwalk’s wall created by the hurricanes, but the reinforcements did not hold.
    — Alicia Victoria Lozano, NBC news, 17 Oct. 2026
  • The Houthi sources told AFP reinforcements were being sent to the area.
    — Frank Andrews, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of reinforcements
Noun
  • These couples are dropping like flies all around us … well, more specifically, all around Heather, who for some reason has become the go-to confidante on this San Francisco trip.
    — Tom Smyth, Vulture, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Season 4 dilutes that power across three couples, one of whom occupies the highest office in America.
    — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of couples
Verb
  • For example, someone repeatedly creating new accounts to steal free AI tokens should be treated differently from a paying casual user whose usage suddenly spikes.
    — Sarita Singh, Fortune, 28 Sep. 2026
  • Kasirye and her team led Sacramento County through measles outbreaks, spikes in opioid addictions and the COVID-19 pandemic.
    — Veronica Fernandez-Alvarado, Sacbee.com, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of spikes

Browse Nearby Words

bracers
braces
bracing
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Cite this Entry

“Braces.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/braces. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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