brail

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brail

(brāl) Nautical

1. One of several small ropes attached to the leech of a sail for drawing the sail in or up.

2. A small net for drawing fish from a trap or a larger net into a boat.

tr.v. brailed, brail·ing, brails

1. To gather in (a sail) with brails.

2. To haul in (fish) with a brail.

[Middle English braile, from Old French brail, belt, from Medieval Latin brācale, from Latin brācae, breeches; see bracket.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

brail

(breɪl) nautical

(Nautical Terms) one of several lines fastened to the leech of a fore-and-aft sail to aid in furling it

(Nautical Terms) (sometimes foll by: up) to furl (a fore-and-aft sail) using brails

[C15: from Old French braiel, from Medieval Latin brācāle belt for breeches, from Latin brāca breeches]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

brail

(breɪl)
n.

1. any of several horizontal lines fastened to the edge of a fore-and-aft sail or lateen sail, for gathering in the sail.

v.t.

2. to gather or haul in (a sail) by means of brails (usu. fol. by up).

[1400–50; late Middle English, variant of brayell < Anglo-French braiel; Old French < Medieval Latin brācāle]

brail

Past participle: brailed
Gerund: brailing

Imperative
brail
brail

Present
I brail
you brail
he/she/it brails
we brail
you brail
they brail

Preterite
I brailed
you brailed
he/she/it brailed
we brailed
you brailed
they brailed

Present Continuous
I am brailing
you are brailing
he/she/it is brailing
we are brailing
you are brailing
they are brailing

Present Perfect
I have brailed
you have brailed
he/she/it has brailed
we have brailed
you have brailed
they have brailed

Past Continuous
I was brailing
you were brailing
he/she/it was brailing
we were brailing
you were brailing
they were brailing

Past Perfect
I had brailed
you had brailed
he/she/it had brailed
we had brailed
you had brailed
they had brailed

Future
I will brail
you will brail
he/she/it will brail
we will brail
you will brail
they will brail

Future Perfect
I will have brailed
you will have brailed
he/she/it will have brailed
we will have brailed
you will have brailed
they will have brailed

Future Continuous
I will be brailing
you will be brailing
he/she/it will be brailing
we will be brailing
you will be brailing
they will be brailing

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been brailing
you have been brailing
he/she/it has been brailing
we have been brailing
you have been brailing
they have been brailing

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been brailing
you will have been brailing
he/she/it will have been brailing
we will have been brailing
you will have been brailing
they will have been brailing

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been brailing
you had been brailing
he/she/it had been brailing
we had been brailing
you had been brailing
they had been brailing

Conditional
I would brail
you would brail
he/she/it would brail
we would brail
you would brail
they would brail

Past Conditional
I would have brailed
you would have brailed
he/she/it would have brailed
we would have brailed
you would have brailed
they would have brailed

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Noun	1.	brail - a small net used to draw fish into a boat net - a trap made of netting to catch fish or birds or insects
	2.	brail - a small rope (one of several) used to draw a sail in rope - a strong line
Verb	1.	brail - take in a sail with a brail furl, roll up - form into a cylinder by rolling; "Roll up the cloth"
	2.	brail - haul fish aboard with brails fish - catch or try to catch fish or shellfish; "I like to go fishing on weekends"

Translations

гитов

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References in classic literature ?

It afflicts me less to hear my sons talk about 'brailing up the foresail' than doing as they

View in context

This is the only 17th century illustration of the technique and it doesn't appear to have been commonly used until the 18th century, when several surviving court theatres used brailing for backdrops, including the court theatre in the Cesky Krumlov castle (Mohler 2007, 57-59).

Theatres with little headroom: historical solutions

The RSPCA's submission to Defra on the proposed new Animal Welfare Bill includes a section on the rearing of game birds for sport and suggests that practices such as pinioning, brailing, beak-trimming and the use of spectacles should be prohibited.