Etymology The noun is derived from Middle English brymme, brimme (“bank or edge of a lake or river; shore of a sea; brink; rim”); of unclear origin; compare Middle High German brem (“margin”). The verb is derived from the noun. cognates * Bavarian Bräm (“border, stripe”) * Danish bræmme (“border, edge, brim”) * obsolete German Bräme, Brame (“border, edge”) * Swedish bräm (“border, edge”) * Icelandic barmur (“edge, verge, brink”)
Originally, a border or edge of a sea, a river, or other body of water; now, any border or edge.
Yet ſtill that direful ſtroke kept on his vvay, / And falling heauie on Cambellos creſt, / Strooke him ſo hugely, that in ſvvovvne he lay, / And in his head an hideous vvound impreſt: / And ſure had it not happily found reſt / Vpon the brim of his brode plated ſhield, / It vvould haue cleft his braine dovvne to his breſt.1596, Edmund Spenser, “Book IIII, Canto III”, in The Faerie Queene. […], part II (books IV–VI), London: […] [Richard Field] for William Ponsonby, →OCLC, stanza 34, page 46:
As the bright ſunne, vvhat time his fierie teme / Tovvards the vveſterne brim begins to dravv, / Gins to abate the brightneſſe of his beme, / And feruour of his flames ſomevvhat adavv: […]1596, Edmund Spenser, “Book V, Canto IX”, in The Faerie Queene. […], part II (books IV–VI), London: […] [Richard Field] for William Ponsonby, →OCLC, stanza 35, page 306:
4 more examples
And all the vvhile, that ſame diſcourteous Knight, / Stood on the further bancke beholding him, / At vvhoſe calamity, for more deſpight / He laught, and mockt to ſee him like to ſvvim. / But vvhen as Calepine came to the brim [of the river], / And ſavv his carriage paſt that perill vvell, / His heart vvith vengeaunce invvardly did ſvvell, / And forth at laſt did breake in ſpeaches ſharpe and fell.1596, Edmund Spenser, “Book VI, Canto III”, in The Faerie Queene. […], part II (books IV–VI), London: […] [Richard Field] for William Ponsonby, →OCLC, stanza 34, page 393:
The ſea Colevvoort grovveth naturally vpon the bayche [beach?] and brimmes of the ſea, vvhere there is no earth to be ſeene, but ſande and rovvling pebble ſtones, vvhich thoſe that dvvell neere the ſea do call Bayche.1597, John Gerarde [i.e., John Gerard], “Of Colewoorts”, in The Herball or Generall Historie of Plantes. […], London: […] Edm[und] Bollifant, for Bonham and Iohn Norton, →OCLC, book II, page 249:
[T]he flovvers, ſtanding vpon ſlender footeſtalkes; the brimmes or edges vvhereof are of a yellovv colour, the middle part purple: […]1597, John Gerarde [i.e., John Gerard], “Of the Bombaste, or Cotton Plant”, in The Herball or Generall Historie of Plantes. […], London: […] Edm[und] Bollifant, for Bonham and Iohn Norton, →OCLC, book II, page 753, column 2:
There is another hearbe of the ſame name, and like in effect, but different in forme from it, […] If the haire of the eye-lids be once pulled forth, and then the edges or brims be annointed therevvith, it vvill keepe them for ever comming up againe.1601, C[aius] Plinius Secundus [i.e., Pliny the Elder], “[Book XXV.] Of Pimpernell, named Anagallis and Corchoros. […].”, in Philemon Holland, transl., The Historie of the World. Commonly Called, The Naturall Historie of C. Plinius Secundus. […], 2nd tome, London: […] Adam Islip, →OCLC, page 236:
2
The topmost lip or rim of a container, or a natural feature shaped like a container.
The toy box was filled to the brim with stuffed animals.
Better spare at brim than at bottom, say I.1546, John Heywood, chapter V, in Julian Sharman, editor, The Proverbs of John Heywood. […], London: George Bell and Sons, […], published 1874, →OCLC, part II, page 115:
4 more examples
And in her other hand a cup ſhe hild, / The vvhich vvas vvith Nepenthe to the brim vpfild.1596, Edmund Spenser, “Book IIII, Canto III”, in The Faerie Queene. […], part II (books IV–VI), London: […] [Richard Field] for William Ponsonby, →OCLC, stanza 42, page 49:
To make the comming houre oreflovv vvith ioy, / And pleaſure drovvne the brim.c. 1604–1605 (date written), William Shakespeare, “All’s Well, that Ends Well”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene iv], page 240, column 1:
To the Boy Cæſar ſend this grizled head, and he vvill fill thy vviſhes to the brimme, / VVith Principalities.c. 1606–1607 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Anthonie and Cleopatra”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene xiii], page 356, column 2:
Heere, vvith a Cup that's ſtur'd vnto the brim, / As do you loue, fill to your Miſtris lippes, / VVee drinke this health to you.c. 1607–1608 (date written), William Shakespeare, [George Wilkins?], The Late, and Much Admired Play, Called Pericles, Prince of Tyre. […], London: […] [William White and Thomas Creede] for Henry Gosson, […], published 1609, →OCLC, signature D, verso:
3
A projecting rim.
› Originally, a border or edge of a sea, a… › A projecting rim.
4
Especially That of a hat.
He turned the back of his brim up stylishly.
And therefore vvould he put his bonnet on, / Vnder vvhoſe brim the gaudie ſunne vvould peepe, […]1593, [William Shakespeare], Venus and Adonis, London: […] Richard Field, […], →OCLC, [verse 182], signature Giij, verso, lines [1087–1088]:
2 more examples
[…] Kneeling upon the Ground, he took up vvith his Hat, vvhich by Cocking the Brims he turn'd into a kind of Cup, ſuch a proportion of VVater that he quench'd his Thirſt vvith it; […]1665, Robert Boyle, “Occasional Reflections. Discourse XIX. Upon Ones Drinking Water out of the Brims of His Hat.”, in Occasional Reflections upon Several Subiects. Whereto is Premis’d a Discourse about Such Kind of Thoughts, London: […] W. Wilson for Henry Herringman, […], →OCLC, section IV (Which Treats of Angling Improv’d to Spiritual Uses), pages 122–123:
In head-dress they affect a certain freedom: hats with partial brim, without crown, or with only a loose, hinged, or valved crown; in the former case, they sometimes invert the hat and wear it brim uppermost, like a University-cap, with what view is unknown.1831, Thomas Carlyle, “The Dandiacal Body”, in Sartor Resartus: The Life and Opinions of Herr Teufelsdröckh. […], London: Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC, 3rd book, page 195:
And as they that bare the Arke were come vnto Jordan, and the feet of the prieſt that bare the Arke, were dipped in the brimme of the water, (for Jordan ouerfloweth all his banks at the time of harueſt) That the waters which came downe from aboue, ſtood and roſe vp vpon an heape very farre, […]1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Joshua 3:15–16, column 1:
The steed along the drawbridge flies, / Just as it trembled on the rise; / Not lighter does the swallow skim / Along the smooth lake's level brim.1808 February 22, Walter Scott, “Canto Sixth. The Battle.”, in Marmion; a Tale of Flodden Field, Edinburgh: […] J[ames] Ballantyne and Co. for Archibald Constable and Company, […]; London: William Miller, and John Murray, →OCLC, stanza XV, page 338:
[T]he place, of that fyre vnder the earthe, […] is not nye the centre of the earth, bicauſe then, it would eaſily bée corrupted, for the earth, is ther moſt pure and therfore, the vertue doth more floriſh, ſo that it is moſt colde, neither is the place of the fyre, vnder the brimme of the Earth, for if it were ther conteyned, it would burne vp the plants, and whatſoeuer is in the face of the ſame, and therfore be concludeth, that it is in the middle hollowneſſes, betwene theſe two extremes, that is, béetwene the centre, ⁊ the face of the earthe, […]1574, Iohn Iones, “The Second Booke of Bathes Ayde”, in A Briefe, Excellent, and Profitable Discourse, of the Naturall Beginning of All Growing and Liuing Things, Heate, Generation, Effects of the Spirits, Gouernment, Vse and Abuse of Phisicke, Preseruation, &c. […], London: […] William Iones, […], →OCLC, folio 11, verso:
For except thou haue borne the croſſe of aduerſitie and temptacion, and haſte felte thy ſelfe brought vnto the very brymme of desperacion, yea ⁊ vnto hells gates, thou canſt neuer medle with the ſentence of predeſtinacion without thine owne harme, and without ſecret wrathe and grudging inwardly agaynſt God, for otherwiſe it ſhal not be poſſible for the [thee] to thinke that God is righteous and iuſte.1549 August 26 (Gregorian calendar), Erasmus, “The Paraphrase of Erasmus vpon the Epistle of the Apostle Sainct Paule to the Romaines. A Prologe vpon the Epistle of Sainct Paule to the Romaynes.”, in Myles Coverdall [i.e., Myles Coverdale], transl., The Seconde Tome or Volume of the Paraphrase of Erasmus vpon the Newe Testament: […], London: […] Edwarde Whitchurche, →OCLC, signature [✠✠.v.], recto:
[T]his cited place lyes upon the very brimme of a noted corruption, vvhich they had, that quote this paſſage, ventur'd to let us read, all men vvould have readily ſeen vvhat grain the teſtimony had bin of, […]1641 June or July, [John Milton], Of Prelatical Episcopacy, and Whither It may be Deduc’d from the Apostolical Times by Vertue of Those Testimonies which are Alledg’d to that Purpose in Some Late Treatises: […], London: […] R[ichard] O[ulton] & G[regory] D[exter] for Thomas Underhill, […], →OCLC, page 10:
1 more example
[H]e that lived long in a violent and habituall courſe of ſinne is at the margin and brim of that ſtate of finall reprobation, and ſome men are in it before they be avvare, and to ſome GOD reckons their dayes ſvvifter, and their periods ſhorter.1649, Jer[emy] Taylor, “Discourse 8. Of Repentance.”, in The Great Exemplar of Sanctity and Holy Life According to the Christian Institution. […], London: […] R. N. for Francis Ash, […], →OCLC, 2nd part, paragraph 27, page 75:
Etymology The noun is derived from Middle English brymme, brimme (“bank or edge of a lake or river; shore of a sea; brink; rim”); of unclear origin; compare Middle High German brem (“margin”). The verb is derived from the noun. cognates * Bavarian Bräm (“border, stripe”) * Danish bræmme (“border, edge, brim”) * obsolete German Bräme, Brame (“border, edge”) * Swedish bräm (“border, edge”) * Icelandic barmur (“edge, verge, brink”)
1
To fill (a container) to the brim (noun etymology 1, noun sense 1.1), top, or upper edge.
Arrange the board and brim the glass.1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], “(please specify |part=Prologue or Epilogue, or |canto=I to CXXIX)”, in In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC:
Thereafter when their cups were brimmed anew with foaming wine the Red Foliot spake among them and said, “O ye lords of Witchland, will you that I speak a dirge in honour of Gorice the King that the dark reaper hath this day gathered?”1922, E[ric] R[ücker] Eddison, The Worm Ouroboros: A Romance, London: Jonathan Cape […], →OCLC, page 31:
Also, Figuratively To be full until almost overflowing.
The room brimmed with people.
The beams that thro' the Oriel shine / Make prisms in every carven glass, / And beaker brimm'd with noble wine.1842, Alfred Tennyson, “The Day-Dream. The Sleeping Palace.”, in Poems. […], volume II, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, page 151:
3 more examples
It was a hint of life in a place that still brims with memories of death, a reminder that even five years later, the attacks are not so very distant.2006, New York Times:
Djokovic, brimming with energy and confidence, needed little encouragement and came haring in to chase down a drop shot in the next game, angling away the backhand to break before turning to his supporters to celebrate.2011 July 3, Piers Newbury, “Wimbledon 2011: Novak Djokovic beats Rafael Nadal in final”, in BBC Sport:
Goalscorer Park was one of a number of England players who will have come off the pitch brimming with confidence.2025 February 26, Emma Sanders, “'A proper English performance' against Spain”, in BBC Sport:
Scotland, Archaic, Poetic Synonym of breme (“of the sea, wind, etc.: fierce; raging; stormy, tempestuous”).
Obsolete except Northern England
brim
noun
Etymology Inherited from Northern Middle English brym, bryme (“waterbody”), from Old English brim (“sea, surf”), from Proto-Germanic *brimą (“turbulence, surge; surf, sea”), from Proto-Germanic *bremaną (“to roar”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrem- (“to hum, make a noise”).
The verb is derived from Middle English brimmen (“of pigs: to be in heat or rut; to breed; to bear fruit”), either: * modified from brem, breme (“of animals: ferocious, savage; of fire, the sea, a storm, etc.: raging, severe, tempestuous; glorious, splendid; etc.”, adjective) (whence modern English breme (“(obsolete) fierce, stormy, tempestuous”)), from Old English brēme (“(poetic) glorious; famous, renowned”), from Proto-West Germanic *brōmi, from Proto-Germanic *brōmiz (“famous”); or * directly from Old English bremman (“to rage; to roar”) (though not attested in Middle English), from Proto-Germanic *bramjaną, *bremaną (“to roar”); both from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrem- (“to make noise”). The noun is derived from Middle English brim, from the verb: see above.
1
Archaic Of a boar (“male pig”): to mate with (a sow (“female pig”)); to rut.
Svvine alone of all creatures vvhen they be brimming, froth and fome at the mouth. And as for the Bore, if he heare the grunting of a Sovv that ſeekes to be brimmed, unleſſe he may come to her, vvill forſake his meat, untill he be leane and poore: and ſhe againe vvill be ſo farre enraged, that ſhe vvill be readie to run upon a man and all to teare him, eſpecially if his cloths be vvhite.1601, C[aius] Plinius Secundus [i.e., Pliny the Elder], “[Book X.] The Generation of Liuing Creatures upon the Land.”, in Philemon Holland, transl., The Historie of the World. Commonly Called, The Naturall Historie of C. Plinius Secundus. […], 1st tome, London: […] Adam Islip, →OCLC, page 304:
Nay, a Country Farmer vvon't ſuffer any Bull to leap a young Covv; nor every Horſe his Mare, nor every Boar to brim his Sovv; tho a Bullock is deſign'd for the Plough, a Horſe for the Cart, and a Svvine for the Kitchen. See novv hovv perverſe the Judgments of Mankind are.1725, Desiderius Erasmus, “Αγαμος Γαμος [Agamos Gamos], or the Vnequal Marriage”, in N[athan] Bailey, transl., All the Familiar Colloquies of Desiderius Erasmus, of Roterdam, Concerning Men, Manners, and Things, […], London: […] J. Darby, A. Bettesworth, F. Fayram, J. Pemberton, J. Hooke, C[harles] Rivington, F. Clay, J. Batley, and E. Symon, →OCLC, page 452:
2
Archaic Of a sow: to be in heat; to rut; also, to mate with a boar.
brim
noun
Etymology A variant of bream.
1
Australia, US Synonym of bream (“a freshwater fish from one of a number of genera”); specifically (US), the redbreast sunfish (Lepomis auritus).
Sometimes her daddy would take her fishing for catfish or brim (bream) out on the lake in his john boat.2015, Susan D. Brandenburg, “Mercy”, in Surviving Strong (A Saxon Saga), Jacksonville, Fla.: Susan the Scribe, Inc., →ISBN, page 26:
brim
noun
Etymology
The verb is derived from Middle English brimmen (“of pigs: to be in heat or rut; to breed; to bear fruit”), either: * modified from brem, breme (“of animals: ferocious, savage; of fire, the sea, a storm, etc.: raging, severe, tempestuous; glorious, splendid; etc.”, adjective) (whence modern English breme (“(obsolete) fierce, stormy, tempestuous”)), from Old English brēme (“(poetic) glorious; famous, renowned”), from Proto-West Germanic *brōmi, from Proto-Germanic *brōmiz (“famous”); or * directly from Old English bremman (“to rage; to roar”) (though not attested in Middle English), from Proto-Germanic *bramjaną, *bremaną (“to roar”); both from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrem- (“to make noise”). The noun is derived from Middle English brim, from the verb: see above.
1
Archaic The period when a sow (“female pig”) is ready to mate; a heat, an oestrus, a rut; also, an act of a boar (“male pig”) and sow mating.
You ſhall ſay […] Boare […] goeth to his […] Brymme.1632, John Guillim, “Sect[ion] III. Chap[ter] XIIII.”, in A Display of Heraldrie: […], 2nd edition, London: […] Richard Badger for Ralph Mab, →OCLC, page 176:
brim
noun
Etymology Clipping of brimstone (“sulphur; (figurative) a domineering, scolding woman”).
Can mortal ſcoundrels thee perplex, / And the great brim of brimſtones vex?1767, Homer, “Homer’s Iliad. Book IV.”, in [Thomas Bridges], transl., A Burlesque Translation of Homer, London: […] S. Hooper, […], published 1772, →OCLC, page 134:
She rav'd, ſhe abus'd me, as ſplenetic mad; / She's a vixen, a brim; zounds! ſhe's all that is bad.1798, [Henry Heartwell], “Song”, in Reform’d in Time. A Comic Opera, […], London: […] Messrs. Cadell and Davies, […], →OCLC, Act II, scene iv, stanza III, page 37: