この記事では語源brev（短い）に関連する英単語を紹介します。
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abbreviate /əbríːvièɪt/ : 短縮する
abbreviateは「短縮する」を意味し、語源はad（方向）とbreviare（短くする）に由来します。同義語はshortenとcontractです。
Abbreviate means “to make a word shorter”, and the etymology comes from ad (direction) and breviare (to shorten). Synonyms are shorten and contract. Let’s see an example sentence of abbreviate.
For example, “Information Technology” is abbreviated to “IT”. “I ‘m” is an abbreviation for “I am”. Native English speakers prefer to use abbreviations like wanna or gonna in conversation. Using a abbreviated form reduces the burden of conversation. If you want to speak English fluently, you should remember the basic abbreviated forms.
abridge /əbrídʒ/ : 要約する
abridgeは「要約する」を意味し、語源はad（方向）とbreviare（短くする）に由来します。同義語はsummarizeとsum upです。
Abridge means “to summarize”, and the etymology comes from ad (direction) and breviare (to shorten). Synonyms are summarize and sum up. Abridge is used for books and materials.
Toma Pickettie’s book “Capital of the 21st Century” is a bestseller but difficult to understand, so numerous abridged (or summary) versions are published. Alfred Adler of psychiatrist advocated personal psychology and wrote various books. Personal psychology is compatible with self-development. Therefore, the corner of the bookstore’s self-development book displays many abridged versions of Adler’s books.
brief /bríːf/ : 短い
briefは「短い」を意味し、語源はbrevis（短い）に由来します。同義語はshortです。
Brief means “short”, and the etymology comes from brevis (short). Synonym is short. Brief is used to express time shortness.
For example, if family clubs are crowded, you will wait for an order for a brief moment. If you live near your parents house, you can make a brief visit to your family. We can learn a lot from brief study abroad. Men want to give women’s big breasts a brief look.
Brief is also used for short and easy-to-understand sentences. Synonym is concise. For example, in job hunting, We write our brief biography on our resume. Let’s write a brief report when your opponent is in a hurry. People who like movies write their brief description on their blog.
briefing /brífɪŋ/ : 事前説明
briefingは「事前説明」を意味し、語源はbrief（仕事の指示）に由来します。
Briefing means “preliminary explanation”, and the etymology comes from brief (job instruction). Let’s see example sentences of briefing.
Using a training machine in a wrong way will make you injured. A sports gym hold a briefing session of the training machine. In the event of a massive terrorist attack, the government will hold a briefing session for press. The university will hold a briefing session for students to study abroad.
briefcase /ˈbriːfˌkeɪs/ : 書類カバン
briefcaseは「書類カバン」を意味し、語源はbrief（訴訟の書類）とcase（箱）に由来します。同義語はattache caseとportfolioです。
Briefcase means “document bag”, and the etymology comes from brief (document of litigation) and case (box). Synonyms are attache case and portfolio.
Workers at sales offices put necessary documents in their briefcase and heads to a business partner. To prevent outsiders from seeing the inside documents, the briefcase has a dial lock. Recently it is common that they put laptops in briefcase, so briefcases with cushioning materials are sold.