This week’s theme
Adverbs

This week’s words
elsewhither
posthaste
abreast

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A.Word.A.Day

PRONUNCIATION:

(uh-BREST)

MEANING:

adverb:
1. Side by side and facing the same direction.
2. Informed; up-to-date.

ETYMOLOGY:

From a- (on, at) + breast, from Old English breost. Earliest documented use: 1450.

NOTES:

Originally, abreast described people (or horses, soldiers, or ships) moving shoulder to shoulder, or more precisely, with chests aligned. The figurative sense came later: staying abreast of the news meant keeping yourself in line with the latest developments. So if you’re reading this, you’re already abreast of the word abreast.

USAGE:

“The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ... keeps the world abreast of research into global warming and its impact.”
Risks and Regulations; The Economist (London, UK); Aug 24, 2024.

See more usage examples of abreast in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY: