the.com/bracer
A shot of liquor pretending to be medicine for your nerves.
means A strong drink taken to steady your nerves or give you courage before something daunting.
from From 'brace,' meaning to tighten, support, or strengthen — the same root behind bracing wind and bracing yourself for bad news. Originally a 'bracer' was literally an arm-guard worn by archers, something that braced the limb against the bowstring's snap. By the 1800s the word had wandered from armor to anatomy to attitude: a drink that braces you, stiffens your spine, readies you for impact — medicinal in name only.
- origin
- from brace, meaning to steady or tighten
- usage
- pre-1900 slang for a fortifying drink
- also means
- forearm armor worn by archers
- irony
- supposedly steadies you by making you drunker