Word
abray
Definition
v. to make a sound like a horse or a goat. This is an old word that people rarely use today.
v. to bray or make a loud, harsh sound, typically associated with a donkey or a goat. Archaic in modern usage; primarily found in historical texts or poetry.
Examples
“The donkey began to abray loudly in the night.”
“The old goat would abray whenever it heard the sound of a passing train.”
“In the silence of the valley, the sudden abray of the donkey echoed against the stone walls, startling the sleeping travelers.”
Examples
simple
“The donkey began to abray loudly in the night.”
contextual
“The old goat would abray whenever it heard the sound of a passing train.”
complex
“In the silence of the valley, the sudden abray of the donkey echoed against the stone walls, startling the sleeping travelers.”
Etymology
Back-formation from the preterite abraid, abrayde. More at abraid.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/abray