noun · 8 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
General-American:/ˈbɹʌðɚˌhʊd/
Received-Pronunciation:/ˈbɹʌðəˌhʊd/
British, Southern, Standard:/ˈbɹʌðəˌhɵd/
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
Northern-England:/ˈbɹʊðəˌhʊd/
Northern-England:/ˈbɹʊðəˌɹʊd/h-dropping
Scotland:/ˈbɹʌðəɾˌhʉd/
Northern-Ireland:/ˈbɹʌðəɹˌhʉd/
rhymes with -ʌðə(ɹ)hʊd
CMU ARPABET:B R AH1 DH ER0 HH UH2 D
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
The state of being brothers or a brother (also figuratively).
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
brotherdom
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
An association of people for any purpose, such as a society of monks; a fraternity.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
James formed a kind of brotherhood for ex-pats who were working in Valencia.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
All the people engaged in the same business, especially those of the same profession
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
the legal brotherhood
the medical brotherhood
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
noun
Meaning 4
People, or (poetically) things, of the same kind.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
5
noun
Meaning 5
the feeling that men should treat one another like brothers
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: friendliness
6
noun
Meaning 6
people engaged in a particular occupation
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
the medical fraternity
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: fraternity, sodality
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: class, stratum, social class, socio-economic class
7
noun
Meaning 7
an organization of employees formed to bargain with the employer
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
you have to join the union in order to get a job
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: union, labor union, trade union, trades union
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: organization, organisation
Narrower terms: industrial union, vertical union, craft union, company union, Industrial Workers of the World, IWW, I.W.W.
8
noun
Meaning 8
the kinship relation between a male offspring and the siblings
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: kinship, family relationship, relationship
History
Etymology
From Middle English brotherhod, equivalent to brother + -hood, from earlier brotherhede, alteration (influenced by suffixes in -hood, -head) of Early Middle English brotherrede (“brotherhood, fraternity”), from Old English brōþorrǣden (“brotherhood, fellowship”), equivalent to brother + -red (see brotherred). More at brother, -red. Piecewise doublet of friarhood.
Across languages
Translations
144 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Afrikaans:
broederskap
— state of being brothers or a brother
Albanian:
vëllazëri
— state of being brothers or a brother
Arabic:
أُخُوَّة
(ʔuḵuwwa)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Assyrian Neo-Aramaic:
ܐܲܚܘܼܬܵܐ
(aḵutā)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Armenian:
եղբայրություն
(eġbayrutʻyun)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Aromanian:
frãtsilji
— state of being brothers or a brother
Asturian:
fraternidá
— state of being brothers or a brother
Avar:
вацлъи class 3
(waclsi)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Azerbaijani:
qardaşlıq
— state of being brothers or a brother
Belarusian:
бра́цтва
(bráctva)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Belarusian:
братэ́рства
(bratérstva)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Bengali:
বেরাদরী
(beradori)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Bulgarian:
бра́тство
(brátstvo)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Catalan:
fraternitat
— state of being brothers or a brother
Catalan:
germanor
— state of being brothers or a brother
Chinese Mandarin:
哥們義氣 /哥们义气
(gēmen yìqì)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Cornish:
brederedh
— state of being brothers or a brother
Czech:
bratrství
— state of being brothers or a brother
Danish:
broderskab
— state of being brothers or a brother
Dutch:
broederschap
— state of being brothers or a brother
Esperanto:
frateco
— state of being brothers or a brother
Finnish:
veljeys
— state of being brothers or a brother
French:
fraternité
— state of being brothers or a brother
Galician:
irmandade
— state of being brothers or a brother
Georgian:
ძმობა
(ʒmoba)
— state of being brothers or a brother
German:
Bruderschaft
— state of being brothers or a brother
Greek:
αδελφοσύνη
(adelfosýni)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Gujarati:
ભાઈબંધી
(bhāībandhī)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Gujarati:
બિરાદરી
(birādrī)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Hebrew:
אחווה \ אַחֲוָה
(akhavá)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Hungarian:
testvériség
— state of being brothers or a brother
Ido:
frateso
— state of being brothers or a brother
Italian:
fratellanza
— state of being brothers or a brother
Japanese:
兄弟の間柄
(kyōdai no aidagara)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Kashmiri:
بٲے تون
(bạ̄y tōn)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Korean:
형제간
(hyeongjegan)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Korean:
형제지간
(hyeongjejigan)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Northern Kurdish:
biratî
— state of being brothers or a brother
Lao:
ພາລາດອນພາບ
(phā lā dǭn phāp)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Latin:
frāternitās
— state of being brothers or a brother
Macedonian:
братство
(bratstvo)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Malayalam:
സാഹോദര്യം
(sāhōdaryaṁ)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Mingrelian:
ჯიმალობა
(ǯimaloba)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Khiamniungan Naga:
têisǜnîu
— state of being brothers or a brother
Norwegian Bokmål:
brorskap
— state of being brothers or a brother
Norwegian Nynorsk:
brorskap
— state of being brothers or a brother
Old Church Slavonic:
братрьство
(bratrĭstvo)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Persian:
برادری
(barâdari)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Polish:
braterstwo
— state of being brothers or a brother
Portuguese:
irmandade
— state of being brothers or a brother
Portuguese:
fraternidade
— state of being brothers or a brother
Romanian:
fraternitate
— state of being brothers or a brother
Romanian:
frăție
— state of being brothers or a brother
Russian:
бра́тство
(brátstvo)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Serbo-Croatian:
бра̀тство
— state of being brothers or a brother
Serbo-Croatian:
bràtstvo
— state of being brothers or a brother
Sicilian:
fratillanza
— state of being brothers or a brother
Slovak:
bratstvo
— state of being brothers or a brother
Slovene:
bràtstvo
— state of being brothers or a brother
Southern Altai:
карындаштык
(karïndaštïk)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Spanish:
fraternidad
— state of being brothers or a brother
Sumerian:
𒉆𒋀
(nam-šeš)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Swedish:
broderskap
— state of being brothers or a brother
Thai:
ภราดรภาพ
— state of being brothers or a brother
Turkish:
kardeşlik
— state of being brothers or a brother
Turkish:
biraderlik
— state of being brothers or a brother
Udi:
вичилугъ
(vičiluɣ)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Ukrainian:
брате́рство
(bratérstvo)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Ukrainian:
бра́тство
(brátstvo)
— state of being brothers or a brother
Vietnamese:
tình anh em
— state of being brothers or a brother
Welsh:
brawdoliaeth
— state of being brothers or a brother
Welsh:
brawdoliaethau
— state of being brothers or a brother
Afrikaans:
broederskap
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Albanian:
vëllazëri
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Armenian:
եղբայրություն
(eġbayrutʻyun)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Belarusian:
бра́цтва
(bráctva)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Belarusian:
братэ́рства
(bratérstva)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Bulgarian:
бра́тство
(brátstvo)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Danish:
broderskab
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Dutch:
broederschap
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Esperanto:
frataro
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Finnish:
veljeskunta
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
French:
confrérie
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
French:
fraternité
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Galician:
irmandade
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Galician:
confraría
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Georgian:
საძმო
(saʒmo)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
German:
Bruderschaft
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Greek:
αδελφότητα
(adelfótita)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Ancient Greek:
ἀδελφότης
(adelphótēs)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Hebrew:
אחווה \ אַחֲוָה
(akhavá)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Hindi:
बंधुत्व
(bandhutva)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Hungarian:
testvériség
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Irish:
bráithreachas
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Italian:
fratellanza
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Kazakh:
бауырластық
(bauyrlastyq)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Kazakh:
туыстық
(tuystyq)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Central Kurdish:
برایەتی
(brayetî)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Northern Kurdish:
biratî
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Lao:
ພາລາດອນພາບ
(phā lā dǭn phāp)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Macedonian:
братство
(bratstvo)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Norwegian:
brorskap
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Polish:
bractwo
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Portuguese:
irmandade
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Portuguese:
fraternidade
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Romanian:
fraternitate
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Russian:
бра́тство
(brátstvo)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Serbo-Croatian:
бра̀тство
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Serbo-Croatian:
bràtstvo
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Sicilian:
fratillanza
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Slovak:
bratstvo
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Slovene:
bratovščina
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Southern Altai:
карындаштык
(karïndaštïk)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Spanish:
hermandad
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Spanish:
cofradía
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Swedish:
brödraskap
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Tagalog:
kapatiran
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Thai:
ภราดรภาพ
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Turkish:
kardeşlik
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Turkish:
birlik
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Ukrainian:
брате́рство
(bratérstvo)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Ukrainian:
бра́тство
(brátstvo)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Vietnamese:
hữu ái
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Yiddish:
ברידערשאַפֿט
(bridershaft)
— an association of any purpose, a fraternity
Finnish:
ammattikunta
— body of persons engaged in same business
Galician:
gremio
— body of persons engaged in same business
German:
Kammer
— body of persons engaged in same business
Turkish:
kardeşlik
— body of persons engaged in same business
Turkish:
birlik
— body of persons engaged in same business
Turkish:
dernek
— body of persons engaged in same business
Turkish:
lokal
— body of persons engaged in same business
Turkish:
cemiyet
— body of persons engaged in same business
Danish:
broderskab
— persons of a like kind
Finnish:
veljeskunta
— persons of a like kind
French:
fraternité
— persons of a like kind
Galician:
irmandade
— persons of a like kind
Greek:
αδελφάτο
(adelfáto)
— persons of a like kind
Hungarian:
testvériség
— persons of a like kind
Macedonian:
братство
(bratstvo)
— persons of a like kind
Serbo-Croatian:
бра̀тство
— persons of a like kind
Serbo-Croatian:
bràtstvo
— persons of a like kind
Southern Altai:
карындаштык
(karïndaštïk)
— persons of a like kind
