brief

adj

1. Of short duration; happening quickly.

   “Her reign was brief but spectacular.”

   “Some, how briefe the Life of man / runs his erring pilgrimage, / That the ſtretching of a ſpan, / buckles in his ſumme of age.”

   “It was a joy to snatch some brief respite, and find himself in the rectory drawing–room. Listening here was as pleasant as talking; just to watch was pleasant. The young priests who lived here wore cassocks and birettas; their faces were fine and mild, yet really strong, like the rector's face; and in their intercourse with him and his wife they seemed to be brothers.”

   “That brief moment after the election four years ago, when many Americans thought Mr. Obama’s election would presage a new, less fractious political era, now seems very much a thing of the past.”

2. Concise; taking few words.

   “His speech of acceptance was brief but moving.”

   “The briefe ſtyle is that which expreſſeth much in little.”

   “She was like a Beardsley Salome, he had said. And indeed she had the narrow eyes and the high cheekbone of that creature, and as nearly the sinuosity as is compatible with human symmetry. His wooing had been brief but incisive.”

   “If Demandt's essay served as a strident example of the German desire for normalcy, a more subtle example was provided by a brief allohistorical depiction of a Nazi victory in World War II written by German historian Michael Salewski in 1999.”

3. Occupying a small distance, area or spatial extent; short.

   “Her skirt was extremely brief but doubtless cool.”

   “On the beach he always wore a straw hat with a red band and a brief pair of leopard print trunks.”

4. (obsolete)Rife; common; prevalent.

noun

1. A writ summoning one to answer; an official letter or mandate.
2. A writ summoning one to answer; an official letter or mandate.

   “It was in vain that the bishop published a new papal brief, declaring valid the excommunications which he had issued, and those of the inquisitors to be null, and requiring them to seek absolution from him.”

3. An answer to any action.

   “A written answer or any other brief shall be submitted to the court while allowing a period necessary for the opponent to make preparations with regard to the matters stated therein.”

4. A memorandum of points of fact or of law for use in conducting a case.
5. (broadly, figuratively)A position of interest or advocacy.

   “Mrs. Hope was, we believe, a convert to the Roman Catholic Church, and neither she nor her editor conceals the fact that they hold a brief for the Pope and for Catharine against Henry VIII.”

6. An attorney's legal argument in written form for submission to a court.
7. (English)The material relevant to a case, delivered by a solicitor to the barrister who is counsel for the case.
8. (English, slang)A barrister who is counsel for a party in a legal action.
9. A short news story or report.

   “We got a news brief.”

   “Hie good ſir Mighell, beare this ſealed briefe / With winged haſte to the Lord Marſhall / This to my cooſen Scroope, and all the reſt / To whom they are directed.”

10. (plural-normally)Underwear briefs.

    “I wear boxer shorts under trousers but for sports I usually wear a brief.”

11. (plural-normally)Swimming briefs.
12. (obsolete)A summary, précis or epitome; an abridgement or abstract.

    “[…] euen ſo it fareth with mee, who béeing about to anatomize Abſurditie, am vrged to take a view of ſundry mens vanitie, a ſuruey of their follie, a briefe of their barbariſme […]”

    “EACH woman is a brief of womankind, / And doth in little e’en as much contain, / As in one day and night all life we find ; / Of either more is but the ſame again […]”

13. (UK, historical)A letter patent, from proper authority, authorizing a collection or charitable contribution of money in churches, for any public or private purpose.
14. (slang)A ticket of any type.

verb

1. (transitive)To summarize a recent development to some person with decision-making power.

   “The U.S. president was briefed on the military coup and its implications on African stability.”

   “Lubbers was briefed by Shanghai Mayor Jiang Zemin on the city's economic situation, and this evening, Lubbers attended a banquet hosted by the Shanghai Municipal Governoment^([sic – meaning Government]).”

   “It is being briefed that Southeastern operations will return to the private sector, and that use of the Operator of Last Resort team will be a temporary arrangement.”

2. (transitive)To write a legal argument and submit it to a court.

adv

1. (obsolete, poetic)Briefly.

   “Whence Adam faultring long, thus anſwer’d brief.”

2. (obsolete, poetic)Soon; quickly.

   “But that a ioy paſt ioy, calls out on me, / It were a griefe, to briefe to part with thee : / Farewell.”