n. [ OE. brusche, OF. broche, broce, brosse, brushwood, F. brosse brush, LL. brustia, bruscia, fr. OHG. brusta, brust, bristle, G. borste bristle, bürste brush. See Bristle, n., and cf. Browse. ] 1. An instrument composed of bristles, or other like material, set in a suitable back or handle, as of wood, bone, or ivory, and used for various purposes, as in removing dust from clothes, laying on colors, etc. Brushes have different shapes and names according to their use; as, clothes brush, paint brush, tooth brush, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The bushy tail of a fox. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Zool.) A tuft of hair on the mandibles. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Branches of trees lopped off; brushwood. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. A thicket of shrubs or small trees; the shrubs and small trees in a wood; underbrush. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. land covered with brush{ 5 }; in Australia, a dense growth of vegetation in good soil, including shrubs and trees, mostly small. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. +PJC ]

7. (Elec.) A bundle of flexible wires or thin plates of metal, used to conduct an electrical current to or from the commutator of a dynamo, electric motor, or similar apparatus. [ 1913 Webster ]

8. The act of brushing; as, to give one's clothes a brush; a rubbing or grazing with a quick motion; a light touch; as, we got a brush from the wheel as it passed. [ 1913 Webster ]

[ As leaves ] have with one winter's brush
Fell from their boughts. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

9. A skirmish; a slight encounter; a shock or collision; as, to have a brush with an enemy; a brush with the law. [ 1913 Webster ]

Let grow thy sinews till their knots be strong,
And tempt not yet the brushes of the war. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

10. A short contest, or trial, of speed. [ 1913 Webster ]

Let us enjoy a brush across the country. Cornhill Mag. [ 1913 Webster ]

Electrical brush, a form of the electric discharge characterized by a brushlike appearance of luminous rays diverging from an electrified body. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To move nimbly in haste; to move so lightly as scarcely to be perceived; as, to brush by. [ 1913 Webster ]

Snatching his hat, he brushed off like the wind. Goldsmith. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Brushed p. pr. & vb. n. Brushing. ] [ OE. bruschen; cf. F. brosser. See Brush, n. ] 1. To apply a brush to, according to its particular use; to rub, smooth, clean, paint, etc., with a brush. “A' brushes his hat o' mornings.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To touch in passing, or to pass lightly over, as with a brush. [ 1913 Webster ]

Some spread their sailes, some with strong oars sweep
The waters smooth, and brush the buxom wave. Fairfax. [ 1913 Webster ]

Brushed with the kiss of rustling wings. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To remove or gather by brushing, or by an act like that of brushing, or by passing lightly over, as wind; -- commonly with off. [ 1913 Webster ]

As wicked dew as e'er my mother brushed
With raven's feather from unwholesome fen. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

And from the boughts brush off the evil dew. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

To brush aside, to remove from one's way, as with a brush. --
To brush away, to remove, as with a brush or brushing motion. --
To brush up, to paint, or make clean or bright with a brush; to cleanse or improve; to renew. [ 1913 Webster ]

You have commissioned me to paint your shop, and I have done my best to brush you up like your neighbors. Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. 1. p. p. of brush. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

2. having a soft nap produced by brushing; as, a dress of brushed cotton. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. One who, or that which, brushes. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The quality of resembling a brush; brushlike condition; shagginess. Dr. H. More. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. 1. Constructed or used to brush with; as a brushing machine. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Brisk; light; as, a brushing gallop. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ From George J. Brush, an American mineralogist. ] (Min.) A white or gray crystalline mineral consisting of the acid phosphate of calcium. [ 1913 Webster ]

(Zool.) A large, edible, gregarious bird of Australia (Talegalla Lathami) of the family Megapodidæ. Also applied to several allied species of New Guinea. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ The brush turkeys live in the “brush, ” and construct a common nest by collecting a large heap of decaying vegetable matter, which generates heat sufficient to hatch the numerous eggs (sometimes half a bushel) deposited in it by the females of the flock. [ 1913 Webster ]

1. A wheel without teeth, used to turn a similar one by the friction of bristles or something brushlike or soft attached to the circumference. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A circular revolving brush used by turners, lapidaries, silversmiths, etc., for polishing. [ 1913 Webster ]