Englishfor English speakers
a
Determinative
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A is used when the following word could be any of a certain type.
Compare "A book I saw on the shelf" and "The book I gave you yesterday".
a
Noun
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A is the first letter of the alphabet.
The letter "a" comes before "b".
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In some schools, an A is a very high grade.
Ron got an A on his earth science test.
brief
Adjective
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If something is brief, it is for a short time.
Today there will be brief periods of rain.
Today's meeting should be very brief.
The ceremony included a brief speech by the president.
She arrived when she was 13 months old and, except for one brief period, she never left.
During the brief interview I was asked why I wanted to work for UPS.
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If a piece of clothing such as shorts or a skirt is brief, it is short.
One of them was naked, the other wore only a pair of brief shorts.
brief
Noun
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A brief is a short piece of writing or a short talk.
They've been asked to file briefs, stating why they think the case should not be heard.
My father was at work, reading through a pile of legal briefs.
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Briefs are short underpants.
Could you tell whether he was wearing briefs or boxers under his trousers?
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You use in brief to show that you will speak or write in a short way.
In brief, the results suggest that coffee is not harmful in small amounts.
brief
Verb
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If you brief someone, you tell them the most important information about something.
Army General David Petraeus briefed the president on the progress of the plan.