brunt

noun

ˈbrənt 

1

: the principal force, shock, or stress (as of an attack)

bear the brunt of the storm

the brunt of the struggle with the German army fell upon the Russians

—Walter Lippmann

2

: the greater part : burden

Synonyms

• body
• bulk
• chief
• core
• generality
• heft [archaic]
• main
• mass
• staple
• weight

Examples of brunt in a Sentence

the brunt of the responsibility fell on her shoulders

Recent Examples on the Web

But the combination of executive orders, laws and military commands were indiscriminate and their brunt fell upon innocent Japanese Americans, who were forced into concentration camps without regard for their loyalty, only their ancestry. —Eli Wizevich, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Dec. 2024

The rural communities that surround the Salton Sea, their populations majority Latino, bear a disproportionate brunt of this crisis. —Rebecca Plevin, Los Angeles Times, 16 Dec. 2024

Since, as has often been noted in The Baltimore Sun, this project will mostly benefit Virginia’s power-hungry data centers, why should Maryland residents bear the brunt? —Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 30 Nov. 2024

Those with the fewest resources to adapt, who did the least to cause the climate crisis, will bear the brunt. —Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, WIRED, 26 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English

First Known Use

1769, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing brunt

• the brunt of

Kids Definition

brunt

noun

ˈbrənt 

: the main force or stress (as of an attack)

the brunt of the storm