breeze

breeze

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Pronunciation

• breeze: /briːz/

• breeze:

• /b/ - voiced bilabial stop

• /r/ - voiced alveolar approximant

• /iː/ - long close front unrounded vowel

• /z/ - voiced alveolar fricative

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Word Form Variations

• Noun:

• Singular: breeze

• Plural: breezes

• Verb:

• Base form: breeze

• Third-person singular present: breezes

• Present participle: breezing

• Past tense: breezed

• Past participle: breezed

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Definitions, Synonyms and Antonyms

Noun

1. A gentle, pleasant current of air.

• Synonyms: zephyr, puff, waft, gust (often implies a slightly stronger current)

• Antonyms: gale, storm, tempest, hurricane

2. Something that is very easy to do or accomplish.

• Synonyms: cinch, snap, cakewalk, walkover, picnic

• Antonyms: struggle, challenge, ordeal, hardship

Verb

1. To move or proceed quickly and easily.

• Synonyms: glide, sweep, sail, whisk, dart

• Antonyms: trudge, plod, toil, struggle

2. To accomplish something with little effort.

• Synonyms: ace, master, sail through, coast through

• Antonyms: fumble, struggle with, botch, fail at

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Examples of Use

• Books: "A cool breeze swept through the open window, rustling the curtains and bringing with it the scent of blooming jasmine." (From a work of fiction, illustrating the literal sense of a gentle wind).

• Newspapers: "The new tax policy is expected to breeze through parliament with bipartisan support, facing minimal opposition." (The Financial Times, March 2023)

• Online Publications: "Getting your smart home set up can be a breeze with these simple tips and tricks." (TechCrunch, April 2024)

• Various Entertainment Mediums and Platforms:

• Film Dialogue: "Don't worry about the presentation tomorrow; you'll breeze through it. You know your stuff." (Heard in a popular streaming series, June 2023)

• Song Lyrics: "And the summer breeze makes me feel fine, blowing through the jasmine in my mind." (From the song "Summer Breeze" by Seals and Crofts, a well-known example of "breeze" referring to a gentle wind)

• Video Game Review: "The controls are intuitive, making movement a breeze even for new players." (IGN, January 2024)

• General Public Discourse:

• "After all that studying, the exam was a breeze." (Common phrase used by students, reflecting the "easy" definition)

• "We decided to take a walk along the beach to catch the evening breeze." (Everyday conversation, referring to the pleasant wind)

• "She just breezed into the meeting five minutes late, as usual." (A common observation about someone's casual or quick entry)

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10 Quotes Using Breeze

1. "There's always a period of curious fear between the first sweet-smelling breeze and the time when the rain comes cracking down." (Don DeLillo)

2. "You cannot kill a breeze, a wind, a fragrance; you cannot kill a dream or an ambition." (Michel Onfray)

3. "Life's too short to just breeze on by." (David Chang)

4. "I seldom think about my limitations, and they never make me sad. Perhaps there is just a touch of yearning at times; but it is vague, like a breeze among flowers." (Helen Keller)

5. "Music is the expression of the movement of the waters, the play of curves described by changing breezes." (Claude Debussy)

6. "When the oak is felled the whole forest echoes with it fall, but a hundred acorns are sown in silence by an unnoticed breeze." (Thomas Carlyle)

7. "Summer bachelors, like summer breezes, are never as cool as they pretend to be." (Nora Ephron)

8. "I don't know if we each have a destiny, or if we're all just floating around accidental-like on a breeze, but I think maybe it's both." (Forrest Gump)

9. "And the summer breeze makes me feel fine, blowing through the jasmine in my mind." (Seals and Crofts, "Summer Breeze")

10. "There is no fragrance in April breezes till breathed with joy as they wander by." (William Cullen Bryant)

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Etymology

The word "breeze" has a somewhat interesting journey to its current meaning.

It originally came into English from Spanish, from the word "briza," which meant a "cold northeast wind." This Spanish word likely came from the Catalan word "brisa," which had a similar meaning.

So, when "breeze" first appeared in English around the mid-16th century (specifically the 1550s), its primary meaning was quite specific: a cool or cold wind, often from the northeast. Think of it as a particular type of wind, not just any gentle air movement.

Over time, the meaning broadened. By the late 17th century, "breeze" started to be used more generally for any light, gentle wind, regardless of its direction or temperature.

Then, much later, in the early 20th century (around the 1900s), we saw the development of the figurative meaning of "breeze" to describe something easy to do (like "it was a breeze") or to describe moving quickly and easily (like "he breezed through the test"). This later usage likely came about because a light wind often suggests ease of movement or lack of resistance.

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Phrases + Idioms Containing Breeze

• A breath of fresh air: While not using "breeze" directly, this idiom perfectly captures a similar positive, refreshing feeling. (Meaning: something new and refreshing, a welcome change)

• Breeze in/out: (Meaning: to enter or leave quickly and effortlessly)

• Breeze through (something): (Meaning: to accomplish something easily and quickly)

• Cool as a summer breeze: (Meaning: calm, collected, unruffled)

• It's a breeze: (Meaning: it's very easy to do)

• Like a breeze: (Meaning: easily, smoothly, quickly)

• Shoot the breeze: (Meaning: to chat idly or casually)

• Take the breeze: (Meaning: to go for a short walk, often to get some fresh air)

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Vocabulary-Based Stories from SEA

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Source Information

Definition of breeze from The Academic Glossary at Self Exploration Academy, a Urikville Press Publication. © All rights reserved.

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