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bridge

noun
/bɹɪd͡ʒ/

Etymology

From Middle English brigge, from Old English brycġ (“bridge”), from Proto-Germanic *brugjō, *brugjǭ (“bridge”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰerw-, *bʰrēw- (“wooden flooring, decking, bridge”). Cognates Cognate with Scots brig, brigg (“bridge”), Yola burge (“bridge”), North Frisian brag, Bröch (“bridge”), Saterland Frisian Brääch, Brääg (“bridge”), West Frisian brêge (“bridge”), Dutch brug (“bridge”), German Brücke (“bridge”), Limburgish brögk (“bridge”), Luxembourgish Bréck (“bridge”), Vilamovian bryk (“bridge”), Yiddish בריק (brik, “bridge”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål brygge (“jetty, pier, wharf”), Faroese, Icelandic bryggja (“pier”), Norwegian Nynorsk brygge, bryggje (“jetty, pier, wharf”), Swedish brygga (“bridge; pier”). The verb is from Middle English briggen, from Old English brycġian (“to bridge, make a causeway, pave”), derived from the noun. Cognate with Dutch bruggen (“to bridge”), Middle Low German bruggen (“to bridge”), Old High German bruccōn (“to bridge”) (whence Modern German brücken). The sense of a part of a stringed instrument is a semantic loan from German Steg, from Old High German steg.

  1. derived from steg
  2. derived from brycġian
  3. derived from briggen
  4. derived from *bʰerw-✻
  5. derived from *brugjō✻
  6. inherited from brycġ
  7. inherited from brigge

Definitions

  1. A construction or natural feature that spans a divide.

    • The rope bridge crosses the river.
    • It was a beautiful view from the Brooklyn Bridge.

  2. An arch or superstructure.

    • The first officer is on the bridge.

  3. A connection, real or abstract.

  4. ›+ 16 more definitions

    1. Any of several electrical devices that measure characteristics such as impedance and…

      Any of several electrical devices that measure characteristics such as impedance and inductance by balancing different parts of a circuit

    2. A low wall or vertical partition in the fire chamber of a furnace, for deflecting flame,…

      A low wall or vertical partition in the fire chamber of a furnace, for deflecting flame, etc.; a bridge wall.

    3. The situation where a lone rider or small group of riders closes the space between them…

      The situation where a lone rider or small group of riders closes the space between them and the rider or group in front.

    4. A solid crust of undissolved salt in a water softener.

    5. An elongated chain of teammates, connected to the pack, for improved blocking potential.

    6. A form of cheating by which a card is cut by previously curving it by pressure of the…

      A form of cheating by which a card is cut by previously curving it by pressure of the hand.

      • see for the card game of contract bridge.

    7. To be or make a bridge over something.

      • With enough cable, we can bridge this gorge.
      • On this occasion, the damage was far more serious. The sea wall was breached completely for a distance of over 50 yd., and the gap had to be bridged by a temporary timber viaduct.

    8. To span as if with a bridge.

      • The two groups were able to bridge their differences.
      • Before another word was spoken Inspector Beedel had appeared, and the grip of bone and muscle on the straining wrists was changed to one of steel. Less than thirty seconds bridged the whole astonishing transformation.

    9. To transition from one piece or section of music to another without stopping.

      • We need to bridge that jam into "The Eleven".

    10. To connect two or more computer buses, networks etc. with a bridge.

    11. To go to the bridge position.

    12. To employ the bridge tactic. (See Noun section.)

    13. Any of a certain family of trick-taking card games.

      • Bidding is an essential element of the game of bridge.

    14. A surname.

    15. A village and civil parish in Canterbury district, Kent, England (OS grid ref TR1854).…

      A village and civil parish in Canterbury district, Kent, England (OS grid ref TR1854). Recorded as Brige in 1086 (DB), from Old English brycg.

    16. An unincorporated community in Coos County, Oregon, United States, named for a river…

      An unincorporated community in Coos County, Oregon, United States, named for a river bridge.

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

A definitional loop anchored at bridge. Each word in the ring is defined by the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself. Scroll to it and watch.

01bridge02divide03separate04disconnect05electrical06engineer07bridges

A definitional loop anchored at bridge. Each word in the ring appears in the definition of the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself.

7 hops · closes at bridge

curated · pre-corpus. live cycle detection across the full graph is the next major milestone.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA