brand

English Online Dictionary. What means brand‎? What does brand mean?

English

Etymology

From Middle English brand, from Old English brand (“fire; flame; burning; torch; sword”), from Proto-West Germanic *brand, from Proto-Germanic *brandaz (“flame; flaming; fire-brand; torch; sword”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrenu- (“to bubble forth; brew; spew forth; burn”).

Cognate with Scots brand, West Frisian brân (“fire”), Dutch brand, German Brand, Danish brand, Swedish brand (“blaze, fire”), Icelandic brandur, French brand (< Germanic). More distantly cognate with Proto-Slavic *gorěti (“to burn”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bɹænd/
• Rhymes: -ænd

Noun

brand (plural brands)

1. A mark or scar made by burning with a hot iron, especially to mark cattle or to classify the contents of a cask.

   Hyponym: badge

2. A branding iron.
3. The symbolic identity, represented by a name and/or a logo, which indicates a certain product or service to the public.

   Synonyms: trademark, logo, brand name, marque, tradename, proprietary name
4. A specific product, service, or provider so distinguished.

5. (by extension) Any specific type or variety of something; a distinct style or manner.
6. The public image or reputation and recognized, typical style of an individual or group.

   Synonyms: repute, name, good name
7. A mark of infamy; stigma.
8. Any minute fungus producing a burnt appearance in plants.
9. (Scotland, Northern England) A torch used for signaling.
10. (obsolete, rare) A flame.
11. (obsolete, rare) A conflagration.
12. (archaic or poetic) A piece of burning wood or peat, or a glowing cinder.
    • 1859-1890, John Gorham Palfrey, History of New England to the Revolutionary War

      Snatching a live brand from a wigwam, Mason threw it on a matted roof.
13. (archaic) A sword.

Derived terms

Related terms

• brandish

Translations

Verb

brand (third-person singular simple present brands, present participle branding, simple past and past participle branded)

1. (transitive) To burn the flesh with a hot iron, either as a marker (for criminals, slaves etc.) or to cauterise a wound.
2. (transitive) To mark (especially cattle) with a brand as proof of ownership.

3. (transitive) To make an indelible impression on the memory or senses.

4. (transitive) To stigmatize, label (someone).
5. (transitive, marketing) To associate a product or service with a trademark or other name and related images.

6. (intransitive) To be very hot, to burn.

Derived terms

Related terms

• brand new
• rebrand

Translations

See also

References

• “brand”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
• brand in Keywords for Today: A 21st Century Vocabulary, edited by The Keywords Project, Colin MacCabe, Holly Yanacek, 2018.
• William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin E[li] Smith, editors (1911), “brand”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.

Afrikaans

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /brant/

Etymology 1

From Dutch brand, from Middle Dutch brant, from Old Dutch *brand, from Proto-Germanic *brandaz.

Noun

brand (plural brande, diminutive brandjie)

1. destructive, catastrophic fire (such as a house fire)

Etymology 2

From Dutch branden, from Middle Dutch branden.

Verb

brand (present brand, present participle brandende, past participle gebrand)

1. (ergative) to burn

Danish

Etymology 1

From Old Danish brand, from Old Norse brandr, from Proto-Germanic *brandaz, compare with Swedish brand, English brand, German Brand.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /branˀ/, [ˈb̥ʁɑnˀ]
• Homophone: brænd

Noun

brand c (singular definite branden, plural indefinite brande)

1. fire (large, destructive fire, as in a building)
2. smut (plant disease)

Declension

References

• “brand,1” in Den Danske Ordbog

Etymology 2

Borrowed from English brand, cognate with the former word.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /braːnd/, [ˈb̥ɹæːnd̥]

Noun

brand n (singular definite brandet, plural indefinite brands)

1. brand (public image)
2. brand (a specific product)

Declension

References

• “brand,2” in Den Danske Ordbog

Etymology 3

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /braːnd/, [ˈb̥ɹæːnd̥]

Verb

brand

1. imperative of brande

Dutch

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /brɑnt/
• Hyphenation: brand
• Rhymes: -ɑnt
• Homophones: brandt, Brand, Brandt

Etymology 1

From Middle Dutch brant, from Old Dutch brant, from Proto-West Germanic *brand, from Proto-Germanic *brandaz.

Noun

brand m (plural branden, diminutive brandje n)

1. destructive, catastrophic fire (such as a house fire)

Derived terms

Descendants

• Afrikaans: brand
• Negerhollands: bran
  • → Virgin Islands Creole: bran
• → Sranan Tongo: branti

See also

• rook
• vuur

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

brand

1. inflection of branden:
   1. first-person singular present indicative
   2. (in case of inversion) second-person singular present indicative
   3. imperative

French

Etymology

Inherited from Middle French brand, from Old French brant, from Frankish *brand (“firebrand, flaming sword”), from Proto-Germanic *brandaz (“firebrand, torch, sword”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrenu- (“to burn”). Cognate with Old High German brant (“fire, firebrand, burning iron”), Old English brand (“fire, flame, brand, torch, sword, weapon”), Old Norse brandr (“fire, firebrand, sword”). More at English brand.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bʁɑ̃/

Noun

brand m (plural brands)

1. (archaic) a sword

Further reading

• “brand”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Icelandic

Noun

brand

1. indefinite accusative singular of brandur

Italian

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English brand.

Noun

brand m (invariable)

1. brand (product symbol)

Middle English

Alternative forms

• braund, brend, brond, broond

Etymology

From Old English brand, brond, from Proto-West Germanic *brand, from Proto-Germanic *brandaz.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /brand/, /braːnd/, /brɔnd/, /brɔːnd/

Noun

brand (plural brandes)

1. fire, flame
2. burning wood or coal
3. torch (lit stick)
4. (chiefly poetic) sword, blade

Related terms

Descendants

• English: brand
• Scots: brand
• Yola: broan, brone

References

• “brā̆nd, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From Old Norse brandr. Doublet of brann.

Noun

brand m (definite singular branden, indefinite plural brandar, definite plural brandane)

1. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {}.
2. (pre-1938) alternative form of brann; fire

References

• “brand” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Occitan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /brand/

Noun

brand m (plural brands)

1. (nautical) pitch (movement around the beam axis)

Old Danish

Etymology

From Old Norse brandr.

Noun

brand

1. fire (occurrence of fire in a certain place)

Descendants

• Danish: brand

Old English

Alternative forms

• brond

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *brand, from Proto-Germanic *brandaz.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /brɑnd/

Noun

brand m

1. firebrand; torch
2. blight (disease of plants)
3. (poetic) a sword

Declension

Strong a-stem:

Descendants

• Middle English: brand, brond
  • English: brand
  • Scots: brand

Old Norse

Noun

brand

1. indefinite accusative singular of brandr

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from English brand.

Noun

brand n (plural branduri)

1. brand

Declension

Swedish

Etymology

From Old Swedish brander, from Old Norse brandr, from Proto-Germanic *brandaz, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrenu-. A derivative of brinna.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /brand/, [bran̪ːd̪]
• Rhymes: -and

Noun

brand c

1. a larger, uncontrolled fire (due to an accident, arson, or the like), a conflagration

   Antonym: eld (“controlled fire”)

2. (archaic, poetic) a sword

Declension

Derived terms

See also

References

• brand in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• brand in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• brand in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)
• Douglas Harper (2001–2025) “brand”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.