bro

noun

ˈbrō 

plural bros

1

informal : brother

… Tommy has a worldview that's larger than his baby bro's.

—Leah Rozen

2

US slang

a

: a male friend

hanging out with his bros

One quirky edge the Olympics haven't yet sanded away is the habit of extreme athletes to stick together. Like, no matter where we're from, we're all bros. That kind of thing.

—Devin Gordon et al.

b

—used as a friendly way of addressing a man or boy

Hey, bro, what's up?

Catch you later, bro.

c

: a young male who is part of a group of similar male friends stereotypically characterized as hearty, athletic, self-confident, party-loving, etc.

The recent season of "Project Greenlight," on HBO, made explicit how resistant to race talk Hollywood can be, a stifling culture of bros bonding with mirror versions of themselves.

—Emily Nussbaum

These were nerds who could pass for bros on a dorm-room sofa …

—Ben McGrath

—often used before another noun

It's the continuation of the bro culture. In my experience, in this world right now, white guys have an advantage. In their training, they've been given access and tools that I haven't. White men get behind each other and empower themselves.

—Tanya Holland

Examples of bro in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The rise of Trump bros:Why some Gen Z men are shifting right How might women, companies feel this shift? —Alyssa Goldberg, USA TODAY, 17 Jan. 2025

Some people were outright hostile to his presence, perhaps because solar bros are widely stereotyped as dishonest. —Brendan I. Koerner, WIRED, 13 Jan. 2025

Newsom — a longtime friend and benefactor of tech bros — tells Musk that’s cool, as long as all those rockets don’t harm the environment. —Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 27 Dec. 2024

Would the Tkachuk bros be the only ones who lay the body during the games? —Chris Johnston, The Athletic, 6 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

by alteration

First Known Use

circa 1530, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing bro

• bro-ey

Kids Definition

bro

noun

ˈbrō 

1

informal : brother sense 1

2

slang : brother sense 3