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

Heading them is none other than Robert Keller, who wasn’t killed after all, and now blames his big bro for abandoning him. —Dennis Harvey, Variety, 11 Apr. 2025

Georgia fiercely defends the city’s artistic soul from developers and finance bros alike. —Gina Ragusa, EW.com, 8 Apr. 2025

The show seems to be setting him up to do a complete 180 from the noxious finance bro he’s been for most of the season. —Eliana Dockterman, Time, 4 Apr. 2025

The actions of Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, and the rest of the tech bros in the wake of Trump’s election have been profiles in cowardice. —Dev Patnaik, Forbes, 12 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

by alteration

First Known Use

circa 1530, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing bro

• bro-ey

Rhymes for bro

• beau
• beaux
• blow
• boe
• coe
• crow
• doe
• doh
• dough
• eau
• eaux
• faux

Kids Definition

bro

noun

ˈbrō 

1

informal : brother sense 1

2

slang : brother sense 3