Forms: 3–5 bref, 4–5 brefe, 4, 7 breef, 5 breyfe, 6–7 breefe, briefe, 7 breif, Sc. brife, 6– brief. [ME. bref, a. OF. bref (12th c. brief):—L. breve ‘letter, dispatch, note,’ in late cl. L. ‘short catalogue, summary,’ neuter of brevis ‘short.’ From official Latin the word entered at an early period into all the Teutonic langs. Cf. ON. bréf (found c. 1015), Sw. bref, Da. brev, OS., OFris. brêf (Du. brief), OHG. briof (9th c.; MHG., mod.G. brief); but it is not recorded in OE., and appears to have entered early ME. from French. Here also it has remained more distinctly an official or legal word, and has not the general sense ‘letter,’ which it has acquired in continental Teutonic.]
Of uncertain sense:
a. 1225. Ancr. R., 122, note (MS. C.). To settin wordis o bref.
I. A letter of authority.
† 1. A writing issued by official or legal authority; a royal letter or mandate; a writ, a summons. (Translating L. breve and Afr. bref in various legal meanings.) Obs.
[1292. Britton, I. i. § 4. Solum ceo qe nous les maunderoms par nos brefs [as we shall authorize by our writs].
c. 1330. R. Brunne, Chron., 237. Edward sent his brefe to Leulyn for his land.
c. 1425. Seven Sag. (P.), 3203. Over alle hys lond hys bref was sente To ase[m]len a comuyn parlyment.
1621. Elsing, Debates Ho. Lords (1870), App. 133. A breefe touching gold and silver thred read.
1641. Termes de la Ley, 43. Briefe signifies … the proces that issues out of the Chauncery or other Courts, commanding the Sherife to summon or attach A. to answer to the suit of B. &c., but more largely it is taken for any precept of the King in writing under seale, issuing out of any Court.
1882. Gunton, in Macm. Mag., XLV. 450. In 1533, he was made Clerk of the Briefs in the Star Chamber.
2. A letter of the pope to an individual or a religious community upon matters of discipline. It differs from a bull in being less ample and solemn, and in the form in which it is written. More fully called apostolical or papal brief.
c. 1460. Towneley Myst., 127. Nuncius, And, lo sirs, if ye trow not me Ye rede this brefe.
1579. Fenton, Guicciard. (1618), 30. The Pope … reenioyned him eftsoones by another Briefe, the selfe same things.
1606. True & Perf. Relat., Y iv a. The receiuing of two Brieues or Bulls from the Pope.
1710. Lond. Gaz., No. 4678/1. The Pope has at last given the Brief of the Cruciata to the King of Spain.
1850. Mrs. Jameson, Leg. Monast. Ord. (1863), 361. Dominick, armed with the papal brief, hastened thither.
1868. W. Cartwright, in News of World, 29 March. A Brief … has but the Pope’s name at the beginning—‘Pius Papa IX.’—is signed by the Cardinal Secretary of Briefs, bears date from the Nativity, and is written in modern letters upon soft white parchment.
† b. A letter of credentials given to mendicant friars and the like. Obs.
1377. Langl., P. Pl., B. XX. 325. The Frere … cam … to þe bisshop & his brief [C. XXIII. 327 breef] hadde In contrees þere he come in confessiouns to here.
c. dial. A begging petition.
1764. J. Collier (Tim Bobbin), Let. to R. W., in Wks. (1862), Introd. 23. Pray advise … whether, I should not have a brief [on the death of a mare].
1879. Miss Jackson, Shropshire Word-bk. (E. D. S.), Brief, a writing setting forth the circumstances by which a poor person has incurred loss, as by fire, the death of a horse, cow, etc. Such a one takes the brief about to collect money for his indemnification.
3. A letter patent issued by the sovereign as Head of the Church, licensing a collection in the churches throughout England for a specified object of charity; called also a Church Brief or King’s Letter. Obs. in practice.
1588. Marprel. Epist., 33. Spent thirteene score pounds in distributing briefes for a gathering towards the erecting of a Colledge.
1661. Pepys, Diary, 30 June. To church, where we observe the trade of briefs is come now up to so constant a course every Sunday, that we resolve to give no more to them.
1781. Cowper, Charity, 469. The brief proclaimed, it visits every pew, But first the squire’s, a compliment but due.
1820. Southey, Lett. (1856), III. 193. A wooden thing … such as the churchwardens carry about in the church to collect money for a brief.
1836. Penny Cycl., V. 420/2. A brief was issued, in 1835, to increase the funds of ‘the Society for the propagation of the Gospel in foreign parts.’
† II. 4. A letter, dispatch, note. Obs.
c. 1400. Destr. Troy, 794. And þan ho broght hym a bref all of brode letres, þat was comly by crafte a clerke for to rede.
1572. Gascoigne, Fruites of Warre (1831), 214. She sent a brief vnto me by hir mayde.
1596. Shaks., 1 Hen. IV., IV. iv. 1. Hie, good Sir Michell, beare this sealed Briefe With … haste, to the lord mareshal.
1652. C. Stapylton, Herodian, XVII. 144. When this Briefe was to the Persians born They … flatly doe their message hold in scorn.
b. Writing, something written.
c. 1450. Lonelich, Grail, xxxi. 265. And the Brefis that on the schipe weren set, Signefieth holy Scripture with-owten let.
1786. Burns, Answ. Poet. Epist., iii. King David, o’ poetic brief, Wrocht ’mang the lasses sic mischief.
III. Something abbreviated.
† 5. A short statement or account of something that is, or might be, more fully treated; an abridgement, epitome, abstract, summary. Obs.
1563. Man, Musculus’ Common-pl., 34 b. A certain brief of those commaundementes [summa quædam eorum præceptorum].
1589. Nashe, Anat. Absurditie, 5. A suruey of their follie, a briefe of their barbarisme.
1645. Pagitt, Heresiogr. (1647), B iiij b. The Creed being a brief of the Gospel.
1691. T. H[ale], Acc. New Invent., 86. A Brief of the Controversie.
† b. fig.
1595. Shaks., John, II. i. 103. The hand of time, Shall draw this breefe into as huge a volume.
a. 1613. Overbury, A Wife (1638), 44. Each woman is a briefe of Womankind.
† c. abstr. Small compass; reduced size.
1572. Gascoigne, Fruites of Warre, cxci. Brought into such brief.
† d. A device, a motto.
1594. Nashe, Unfort. Trav., 52. With this briefe, Qui inuident egent.
† 6. A list, catalogue; an invoice, memorandum.
1590. Shaks., Mids. N., V. i. 42. There is a breefe how many sports are rife.
1601. F. Tate, Househ. Ord. Edw. II., § 10 (1876), 10. He shal make a breef everi day of the parcels of al manner of things delivered & spent. Ibid., § 47. 28. Therof aunswere daily at the briefs to the clarke of the botery.
1753. Chambers, Cycl. Supp., s.v., Briefs of the dead, Brevia mortuorum, were letters sent by the monks of one monastery to those of another … to inform them of the deaths or obits of their monks.
1849. Rock, Ch. of Fathers, II. vii. 380. The Death-bill, called by some the Mortuary-Roll or Brief.
7. Law. A summary of the facts of a case, with reference to the points of law supposed to be applicable to them, drawn up for the instruction of counsel conducting the case in court. To hold a brief: to be retained as counsel in a case, to argue a point for; To take a brief: to accept the conduct of a case.
1631. Star Chamber Cases (1886), 39. To print or write breifes of a cause before the hearing … is to be accounted scandalous.
1709. Steele, Tatler, No. 186, ¶ 3. The young Fellow … seemed to hold his Brief in his Hand rather to help his Action.
1795. Gibbon, Autobiog., 108. I spoke as a lawyer from my brief.
1826. Disraeli, Viv. Grey, III. viii. 128. It is the first day of the Assize, so there is some chance of a brief.
1869. Seeley, Lect. & Ess., I. 7. Ready as Cicero showed himself to take … a brief … from accused and guilty governors.
IV. Something brief or short.
† 8. Music. A short note; = BREVE sb. 2. Obs.
c. 1460. Towneley Myst., 116. What was his song? hard ye not how he crakyd it? Three brefes to a long.
1594. Barnfield, Sheph. Cont., iii. No Briefes nor Semi-Briefes are in my Songs.
1609. Douland, Ornithop. Microl., 39. A Breefe is a Figure which hath a body foure-square, and wants a tayle.
1658. Cokaine, Fun. Elegie on T. Pilkington. His life … Death made it be a Briefe; Crotchets he had good store.
† 9. Gram. A short syllable, = BREVE sb. 3. Obs.
c. 1530. H. Rhodes, Bk. Nurture, in Babees Bk. (1868), 71. Corrupt in speeche am I, my breefes from longes to know.
† 10. Cards. A means of cheating at cards. Obs.
1680. Cotton, in Singer, Hist. Cards, 339. The breef … Take a pack of cards and open them; then take out all the honours … then take the rest and cut a little from the edges of them all alike, by which means the honours will be broader than the rest, so that when your adversary cuts to you, you are certain of an honour; when you cut to your adversary cut at the ends.
11. Comb., as brief-fed adj.; brief-money, money collected under authority of a brief.
1820. T. Mitchell, Aristoph., I. 92. The brief-fed spark … In haste uprises to display his powers of wit and story.
1686. Lady Russell, Lett., I. xxxiv. 88. The disposers of the brief-money met the first time yesterday.
