English word origin

Etymology of bruh

PIE word *bʰréh₂tēr Clipping of brother originating in African-American Vernacular English. Predates, but perhaps influenced, other slang clippings spelled with -h. This is a phonetic clipping: /ˈbɹʌðɚ/ → /bɹʌ/. Contrast

3 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 3 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1 · variant 1/2

Original entry ↗

noun

Alternative form of bro (“male comrade or friend”).

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Doublet mentionbroen

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "dercat",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "langname",
      "args": {
        "1": "ine-pro"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European"
    },
    {
      "name": "word",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine",
        "3": "bʰréh₂tēr",
        "id": ""
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "PIE word",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "bʰréh₂tēr"
      },
      "expansion": "PIE word\n *bʰréh₂tēr"
    },
    {
      "name": "clipping",
      "args": {
        "1": "en"
      },
      "expansion": "Clipping"
    },
    {
      "name": "ic",
      "args": {
        "1": "/ˈbɹʌðɚ/"
      },
      "expansion": "/ˈbɹʌðɚ/"
    },
    {
      "name": "ic",
      "args": {
        "1": "/bɹʌ/"
      },
      "expansion": "/bɹʌ/"
    },
    {
      "name": "doublet",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "bro",
        "notext": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "bro"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "*bʰréh₂tēr",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/bʰréh₂tēr"
    ],
    [
      "brother",
      "brother#English"
    ],
    [
      "African-American Vernacular English",
      "African-American Vernacular English"
    ],
    [
      "-h",
      "-h#English"
    ],
    [
      "bro",
      "bro#English"
    ],
    [
      "brother",
      "brother#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Alternative form of bro (“male comrade or friend”)."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "alt-of",
        "alternative",
        "slang"
      ],
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  }
}

Source etymology 1 · variant 2/2

Original entry ↗

intj

Expressing amazement or shock. · Expressing a feeling that something is stupid, inappropriate, useless or even weird to say, think or do. · Expressing disappointment.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Doublet mentionbroen

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "dercat",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "langname",
      "args": {
        "1": "ine-pro"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European"
    },
    {
      "name": "word",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine",
        "3": "bʰréh₂tēr",
        "id": ""
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "PIE word",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "bʰréh₂tēr"
      },
      "expansion": "PIE word\n *bʰréh₂tēr"
    },
    {
      "name": "clipping",
      "args": {
        "1": "en"
      },
      "expansion": "Clipping"
    },
    {
      "name": "ic",
      "args": {
        "1": "/ˈbɹʌðɚ/"
      },
      "expansion": "/ˈbɹʌðɚ/"
    },
    {
      "name": "ic",
      "args": {
        "1": "/bɹʌ/"
      },
      "expansion": "/bɹʌ/"
    },
    {
      "name": "doublet",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "bro",
        "notext": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "bro"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "*bʰréh₂tēr",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/bʰréh₂tēr"
    ],
    [
      "brother",
      "brother#English"
    ],
    [
      "African-American Vernacular English",
      "African-American Vernacular English"
    ],
    [
      "-h",
      "-h#English"
    ],
    [
      "bro",
      "bro#English"
    ],
    [
      "brother",
      "brother#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [
    {
      "lang": "Vietnamese",
      "lang_code": "vi",
      "word": "bủh",
      "raw_tags": [
        "borrowed",
        "eye dialect"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "intj",
      "glosses": [
        "Expressing amazement or shock.",
        "Expressing a feeling that something is stupid, inappropriate, useless or even weird to say, think or do.",
        "Expressing disappointment."
      ],
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        "slang"
      ],
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}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

noun

The rhesus macaque.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Borrowed from Malay beruk.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":bor",
        "3": "ms:beruk",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "[Appendix:Glossary#loanword|Borrowed]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"Malay\", \"term\" : \"beruk\", \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang\" : \"ms\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"bruh\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"bruh\">\nBorrowed from Malay beruk."
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":bor",
        "3": "ms:beruk",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Borrowed from Malay beruk."
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "beruk",
      "beruk#Malay"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "The rhesus macaque."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "obsolete"
      ],
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Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for bruh →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-YnJ1aA