Braying

bray ¹  (br)

v. brayed, bray·ing, brays

v.intr.

1. To utter the loud, harsh cry of a donkey.

2. To sound loudly and harshly: The foghorn brayed all night.

v.tr.

To emit (an utterance or a sound) loudly and harshly.

n.

1. The loud, harsh cry of a donkey.

2. A sound resembling that of a donkey: "an endless bray of pointless jocosity" (Louis Auchincloss).

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[Middle English braien, from Old French braire, from Vulgar Latin *bragere, of Celtic origin.]

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bray ²  (br)

tr.v. brayed, bray·ing, brays

1. To crush and pound to a fine consistency, as in a mortar.

2. To spread (ink) thinly over a surface.

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[Middle English braien, from Old French breier, of Germanic origin; see bhreg- in Indo-European roots.]