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Meaning & use

brace yourself

phrase·Everydayinformal

Last updated

UK/ˌbreɪs jɔːˈself/
US/ˌbreɪs jʊrˈself/

Meanings

  1. phrasefixed phraseinformal

    Prepare yourself for something difficult, surprising, or unpleasant.

    Grammar: Used as a command or with 'for': 'brace yourself for bad news'.

    Patterns

    • brace yourself for something
    • brace yourself to do something

    Brace yourself — the exam results are not good.

    She braced herself for his angry reaction.

    Brace yourself for a long wait at the airport.

  2. phrasefixed phrase

    Make your body stiff and steady to prepare for a shock or hit.

    Grammar: Often followed by 'against' or 'for': 'brace yourself against the wall'.

    Patterns

    • brace yourself against something
    • brace yourself for impact

    He braced himself against the door as the train lurched.

    The passengers braced themselves for the sudden stop.

Word forms

third person singularbraces yourself
past tensebraced yourself
past participlebraced yourself
-ing formbracing yourself

Common combinations

brace yourself for the worst
Brace yourself for the worst; the storm is coming.
brace yourself for impact
The pilot told us to brace ourselves for impact.
brace yourself against the wall
She braced herself against the wall to keep from falling.
brace yourself for bad news
He braced himself for bad news from the hospital.

Synonyms and how they differ

prepare yourself
More neutral and general; 'brace yourself' suggests a sudden or unpleasant shock.
steel yourself
Means to make yourself mentally strong for something hard; slightly more literary than 'brace yourself'.

Word family

brace verb
To make something stronger or steadier, or to prepare for a shock.
bracing adjective
Fresh and invigorating, as in 'bracing sea air'.

Commonly confused: brace yourself or embrace yourself?

brace yourself vs embrace yourself

'Embrace' means to hold someone or accept an idea; 'brace yourself' means to get ready for something difficult.

Practice

Choose the best completion: 'The doctor said, "Brace yourself —'

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