brethren
/ˈbɹɛðɹən/ noun, adjective
Also a form of brother
Forms brethern bretheren
- noun (poetic) kinsmen
- noun (figuratively) The body of members, especially of a fraternal, religious or military order.
- adjective Of or akin to; related; like
- noun (Protestantism) Members of any congregation in the Anabaptist tradition of the Schwarzenau Brethren, practicing credobaptism and committed to nonresistance and nonviolence, some of whom may wear plain dress and shun modern technology.
- noun (specifically) Members of the Church of the Brethren.
Synonyms
Dunkard Dunker German Baptist Brethren German Baptist Tunker
Etymology
From Early Modern English brethren, plural of brother, from Middle English brethren, from Middle English brethere, brether + -en (plural ending). Ultimately from Old English brōþor, brōþru (“brothers, brethren”), influenced by Old English brēþer, dative singular of brōþor (“brother”). Equivalent to brother + -en (plural ending). Compare German Brüder (“brothers, brethren”). More at brother. The vowel change (from o to e) is called umlaut.
Specific use of brethren as a semantic loan from German Brüder.
Webster’s 1913
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “brethren”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details