brick

brick [brik]

n.

[ME brike < MDu < breken, BREAK (in sense “piece of baked clay”) & MFr brique < OFr, of same orig.]

1. a substance made from clay molded into oblong blocks and fired in a kiln or baked in the sun, used in building, paving, etc.

2. one of these blocks, of any of various standard sizes

3. bricks collectively

4. anything shaped like a brick

5. [Old Informal] a fine person

adj.

1. built or paved with brick

2. like brick [brick red]

vt.

to face, pave, etc. with brick

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brick up or brick in

to close or wall in with brick

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☆ hit the bricks

Slang to go out on strike

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make bricks without straw [from use of straw as binding agent in sun-baked bricks: cf. Ex. 5:7]

to do something without the necessary material