breeze

n.

1. A light current of air; a gentle wind.
2. Any of five winds with speeds of from 4 to 27 knots (5 to 31 miles per hour; 7 to 50 kilometers per hour), according to the Beaufort scale.
3. Informal. Something, such as a task, that is easy to do.

intr.v., breezed, breez·ing, breez·es.

1. To blow lightly.
2. Informal. To progress swiftly and effortlessly: We breezed through the test.
3. To sprint around a racetrack as a means of exercise. Used of a racehorse.

idiom:

shoot the breeze Slang.

1. To engage in idle conversation.

[Perhaps from Old Spanish briza, northeast wind.]

SYNONYMS   breeze, cinch, pushover, snap. These nouns denote something easily accomplished: The exam was a breeze. Chopping onions is a cinch with a food processor. Winning the playoffs was no pushover. The new computer program was a snap to learn.

breeze² (brēz)
n.
The refuse left when coke or charcoal is made.

[Probably from French braise, hot coals, from Old French brese, of Germanic origin.]

noun

1. A gentle wind: zephyr. See breath/breathlessness.
2. A natural movement or current of air: air, blast, blow, gust, wind, zephyr. Archaic gale. See breath/breathlessness.
3. An easily accomplished task: child's play, cinch, pushover, snap, walkaway, walkover. Slang duck soup. See easy/hard.

verb

To move swiftly and effortlessly: zip. Slang waltz. See easy/hard.

In addition to the idiom beginning with breeze, also see hands down (in a breeze); shoot the breeze.

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Origin: 1626

We have to drift perhaps a little off course to find wind for our sails in 1626. It is in a book published by Captain John Smith, who had spent the past twenty years writing about North America. Thus we can hope for some sort of American connection to his book of terms used by sailors, An Accidence for Young Sea-men: Or, Their Path-way to Experience. For the winds, he lists, in order of severity, "A calme, a brese, a fresh gaile, a pleasant gayle, a stiffe gayle, it overblowes, a gust, a storme, a spoute, a loume gaile, an eddy wind, a flake of wind, a Turnado, a monthsoune [monsoon], a Herycano [hurricane]."

This apparently is the first use of breeze (an older word, from the Spanish briza) to refer to a gentle wind. The next year, in his Sea Grammar, Smith explains: "When there is not a breath of wind stirring, it is a calme or a starke calme. A Breze is a wind blowes out of the Sea, and commonly in faire weather beginneth about nine in the morning, and lasteth till neere night."

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IN BRIEF: A light gentle wind. Something very easy to do.

The breeze gently moved the tree leaves.

Tutor's tip: "Bries" are Brie cheeses; "brees" are stocks, broths, or gravies; a "breeze" is a gentle wind.

Breeze

Dansk (Danish)
1.
n. - brise
v. intr. - komme farende

idioms:

• a breeze    en brise
• breeze through    komme farende igennem

2.
n. - slagger, hulaffald

idioms:

• breeze block    slaggebetonplade

Nederlands (Dutch)
bries, makkelijk klusje, ruzie, resten van cokes- of houtskoolbereiding, zachtjes waaien

Français (French)
1.
n. - brise, (US) qch de facile
v. intr. - entrer/sortir d'un air dégagé, entrer/sortir en coup de vent

idioms:

• a breeze    (US) (être) facile comme tout, simple comme bonjour
• breeze through    (US, fig) faire (qch) les doigts dans le nez

2.
n. - cendres (de charbon)

idioms:

• breeze block    parpaing

Deutsch (German)
1.
n. - Brise, leichter Wind
v. - sich zwanglos bewegen, dahinrollen, dahinschlendern

idioms:

• a breeze    (ugs.) ein Einfaches
• breeze through    mit Leichtigkeit erledigen

2.
n. - (tech.) Kohlenklein, Schlacke

idioms:

• breeze block    Leichtstein

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - αεράκι, αύρα
v. - μπαίνω αεράτος

idioms:

• a breeze    εύκολο έργο, παιχνιδάκι
• breeze block    μπρικέτα
• breeze through    (καθομ.) δεν συναντώ καμιά δυσκολία με

Italiano (Italian)
brezza, venticello

idioms:

• a breeze (easy to achieve)    con facilità
• breeze block    blocco di calcestruzzo di scorie
• breeze through    passare velocemente

Português (Portuguese)
n. - brisa (f)
v. - mover-se facilmente, ventar moderadamente

idioms:

• a breeze    muito fácil
• breeze block    pedra (f) leve
• breeze through    passar com facilidade

Русский (Russian)
ветерок, бриз

idioms:

• a breeze    пара пустяков
• breeze block    шлакоблок
• breeze through    пройти без затруднений

Español (Spanish)
1.
n. - brisa
v. intr. - soplar la brisa

idioms:

• a breeze    cosa fácil
• breeze through    pasar (un examen) con facilidad, leer por encima

2.
n. - cisco de carbón de leña, cemento

idioms:

• breeze block    bloque de cemento

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - fläkt, vind, bris, bråk, enkel match
v. - susa, rusa

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
1. 微风, 和风, 吹着微风, 轻易地通过, 一阵风似地走, 越狱逃走

idioms:

• a breeze    简单
• breeze through    轻松地通过

2. 谣传, 传闻, 轻而易举的事, 骚动, 争吵

idioms:

• breeze block    煤渣砌块

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
1.
n. - 微風, 和風
v. intr. - 吹著微風, 輕易地通過, 一陣風似地走, 越獄逃走

idioms:

• a breeze    簡單
• breeze through    輕鬆地通過

2.
n. - 謠傳, 傳聞, 輕而易舉的事, 騷動, 爭吵

idioms:

• breeze block    煤渣砌塊

한국어 (Korean)
1.
n. - 산들바람, 풍파, 간단한 일
v. intr. - 산들 바람이 불다, 재빨리 행동하다

idioms:

• a breeze    매우 쉬운 일
• breeze through    대충 훑어보다

2.
n. - 타다 남은 재, 석탄 가루

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - そよ風, 微風, 楽にできること, 風, ごたごた, 容易なこと
v. - そよ風が吹く, さっと動く

idioms:

• a breeze    騒ぎ, ごたごた
• breeze block    シンダーブロック
• breeze through    さっと通過する, ざっと目を通す

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) نسمه هواء, نفخه ريح (فعل) مر مرورا عابرا‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮רוח קלה, בריזה, רוח הנושבת מהים ביום ומהיבשה בלילה, ריב, זבוב הבקר, שיחה קלה (מדוברת), מטלה קלה (מדוברת), התרגזות‬
v. intr. - ‮חלף, נע, עבר, התהלך בלב קל (מדוברת)‬
n. - ‮פסולת פחמים‬

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A Breeze Too	aloha breeze
Vasque Breeze	ionic breeze