BROWN STUDY • DICTIONARY ONE.COM • Definition of Brown study

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/braʊn stˈədi/ Listen

adjective

Brown adj. (compar. browner; superl. brownest) Of a dark color, of various shades between black and red or yellow. "Cheeks brown as the oak leaves."

Brown Bess, the old regulation flintlock smoothbore musket, with bronzed barrel, formerly used in the British army.

Brown bread

(a)

Dark colored bread; esp. a kind made of unbolted wheat flour, sometimes called in the United States Graham bread. "He would mouth with a beggar though she smelt brown bread and garlic."

(b)

Dark colored bread made of rye meal and Indian meal, or of wheat and rye or Indian; rye and Indian bread. (U.S.)

Brown coal, wood coal. See Lignite.

Brown hematite or Brown iron ore (Min.), the hydrous iron oxide, limonite, which has a brown streak. See Limonite.

Brown holland. See under Holland.

Brown paper, dark colored paper, esp. coarse wrapping paper, made of unbleached materials.

Brown spar (Min.), a ferruginous variety of dolomite, in part identical with ankerite.

Brown stone. See Brownstone.

Brown stout, a strong kind of porter or malt liquor.

Brown study, a state of mental abstraction or serious reverie.

See images of 'Brown study'

Etymology of 'Brown study'

Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48

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"Brown study" Quotes from Famous Books

... on deck, and somehow when I was alone I too went into a brown study, and began wondering at Mr Preddle's curious ways, and thinking what a pity it was that a gentleman like Mr Denning, who was on a voyage for the sake of his health, should take such a dislike to Mr Frewen and Mr Preddle too. It hardly seemed to be like irritability, for after all he was as merry ...

— Sail Ho! - A Boy at Sea • George Manville Fenn

... detective had gone Mr. Marshall sat in a brown study for a few moments. Then he summoned his superintendent ...

— Aunt Jane's Nieces at Work • Edith Van Dyne

... religious! So I said to mamma that, now we knew all about it, there could be no reason why we shouldn't see as much of each other as ever we liked, seeing Richard was our brother. But she paid no heed to me; she sat thinking and thinking; and I read in her face that she was not in a brown study, but trying to get at something. It was many minutes before she spoke, but she did at last, and what she told us is my secret, Barbara! But I'm not bound to keep it from you, for I know you would not hurt Richard, and you have a right to know ...

— There & Back • George MacDonald

... the puzzled look returned to his face many times that evening. He walked home in a brown study. Kilmeny's case certainly seemed a strange one, and the more he thought of it the stranger ...

— Kilmeny of the Orchard • Lucy Maud Montgomery

... cannot, in my views, be any of them the sort of people to enjoy happiness and longevity!" When his reflections reached this point, he felt the more dejected, and plainly betrayed a sad appearance, and all he did was to droop his head and to plunge in a brown study. ...

— Hung Lou Meng, Book I • Cao Xueqin

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