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bruiser. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
bruiser, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
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English
Etymology
From bruise + -er.
Noun
bruiser (plural bruisers)
- (sports) In contact sports, an athlete whose size, strength, and/or aggressiveness make it likely that they will cause athletes on the opposing team to suffer physical punishment.
- (by extension, colloquial, derogatory) A tall, strong, heavily built person, usually a man, especially one prone to physical violence; a strong and tough person.
- Synonym: thug
His "assistant" was a big bruiser named Pete, who, with his enormous shoulders and menacing scowl, was clearly present for the intimidation factor.
1895, A Conan Doyle, chapter X, in The Stark Munro Letters: , London: Longmans, Green, and Co., →OCLC:So there, my dear Bertie, was I, within a few hours of my entrance into this town, with my top-hat down to my ears, my highly professional frock-coat, and my kid gloves, fighting some low bruiser on a pedestal in one of the most public places, in the heart of a yelling and hostile mob! I ask you whether that was cruel luck or not?
1977 February 12, Bruce Michael Gelbert, “Some New York Alternatives”, in Gay Community News, volume 4, number 33, page 5:While planning a recent move, I checked the pages of Majority Report, which lists women-owned and operated businesses and found a listing for "Truck You." Two women from Queens, and formerly of New Jersey GAA, Ulla and Mickey, came with their van and a successful move was accomplished without reliance on macho male bruisers.
- A machine for bruising oats.
- A person who enjoys arguing with others.
- A professional boxer.
1906–1907, Jack London, chapter V, in Before Adam:Sometimes, when in the newspapers I happen upon descriptions of our modern bruisers and prizefighters, I wonder what chance the best of them would have had against him.
Derived terms
Translations
an athlete who likely will cause physical punishment
a heavily built person, usually a man, especially prone to physical violence
Further reading
- “bruiser”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
- William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin E Smith, editors (1911), “bruiser”, in The Century Dictionary , New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.
- “bruiser”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
- “bruiser”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
- “bruiser”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
- “bruiser” in TheFreeDictionary.com, Huntingdon Valley, Pa.: Farlex, Inc., 2003–2025.
Anagrams