brail

1 a small net used to draw fish into a boat

2 a small rope (one of several) used to draw a sail in

1 take in a sail with a brail

2 haul fish aboard with brails

English

Etymology

Old French braiel, from mediæval Latin bracale ‘girdle’ (from bracae ‘breeches’).

Pronunciation

IPA: /bɹeɪl/

• Rhymes: -eɪl

Noun

brail (usually in plural)

1. a small rope used to truss up sails

Verb

brail

1. to haul up a sail using the brails

   • 1993: The winds blew at their own caprice and there was brailing and loosing of canvas. — Anthony Burgess, A Dead Man in Deptford

For the tactile alphabet, see Braille.

Brails, in a ship, are small ropes passing through pulleys, and used to haul in or up the leeches, bottoms, or corners of sails, before furling . These brails belong only to the two courses and the mizzen sail. The command is, hale up the brails, or, brail up the sails .

References