brace of shakes
A very short time.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“I'll be back in a brace of shakes.”
“The waiter said our food would arrive in a brace of shakes, and it did.”
“She promised to return in a brace of shakes, but the minutes stretched into hours as we waited.”
- 01
fair shake
Reasonable, unbiased treatment; a fair deal.
- 02
give one's head a shake
To reassess the common sense of one's behaviour, ideas, etc.
- 03
more than you can shake a stick at
Alternative form of more than one can shake a stick at.
- 04
no great shakes
Something unexceptional, not noteworthy or special.
- 05
shake a leg
To get busy; to get going; to be productive.
- 06
shake a stick at
Disparage; rail against.
- 07
shake like a leaf
To tremble, as with fear, cold, etc.; to shiver.
- 08
shake off the dust from one's feet
To separate oneself from something unpleasant; to leave a place for good.
Last updated August 10, 2026