English

Noun

brass

1. An alloy of copper and zinc used in many industrial and plumbing applications.
2. (music) A class of wind instruments, usually made of brass, that use vibrations of the player's lips to produce sound.
3. Spent shell casings; the part of the cartridge left over after bullets have been fired. (usually made of brass).
4. (military) High-ranking officers. May be singular or plural.

   The brass are not going to like this.

   The brass is not going to like this.

5. Disrespectful attitude.

   You've got a lot of brass telling me to do that!

Translations

• Dutch: messing n (1), brons n (1), geelkoper n (1), brutaliteit f (5)
• French: ciuvre (vert) (1)
• Polish: mosiądz n (1), blacha f, instrument blaszany m (2), łuska f (3)

Adjective

1. (not comparable) Made of brass.
2. (slang) bad, annoying.

Translations

• Dutch: messing (2), bronzen (2), geelkoperen (2)
• Polish: mosiężny m

Related Terms

• brass balls
• brass instrument
• brass monkey
• brass rat
• brass ring
• brass section
• brassed off
• brassware
• brassy
• braze
• brazen
• brazier
• top brass