Merriam-Webster's Collegiate® Dictionary, 11th Edition
BRACE
I. verb (braced; bracing)
Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French bracer to embrace, from brace
Date: 14th century
transitive verb to fasten tightly ; bind ,
2. to prepare for use by making taut, prepare , steel , invigorate , freshen , to turn (a sail yard) by means of a brace,
4. to furnish or support with a brace , to make stronger ; reinforce , to put or plant firmly , to waylay especially with demands or questions, intransitive verb to take heart, to get ready (as for an attack),
II. noun (plural braces) see: brief
Date: 14th century
something (as a clasp) that connects or fastens, two of a kind ; pair , a crank-shaped instrument for turning a bit, something that transmits, directs, resists, or supports weight or pressure: as, a diagonal piece of structural material that serves to strengthen something (as a framework), a rope rove through a block at the end of a ship's yard to swing it horizontally, suspenders, an appliance for supporting a body part, an orthodontic appliance usually of metallic wire that is used especially to exert pressure to straighten misaligned teeth,
5. one of two marks { } used to connect words or items to be considered together, one of these marks connecting two or more musical staffs carrying parts to be performed simultaneously, bracket 3a, a position of rigid attention, something that arouses energy or strengthens morale