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bright and early

bright and early

22 2.7
Very early in the morning
  • idiom
  • Informal
: bien temprano
  • The next morning, Robin woke up bright and early.
  • bright and early tomorrow
  • bright and early morning
  • get up bright and early

And we will see you guys bright and early in the morning.

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Examples

  • In the morning, bright and early, I heard that voice again.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • I want to get up bright and early.

  • And we will see you guys bright and early in the morning.

  • So this morning we are starting it off bright and early and going on a boat.

  • We will see you bright and early in the morning.

  • Be sure to watch us bright and early tomorrow morning.

  • I will see you bright and early in the morning.

  • See you, uh, bright and early Monday a.m.

  • Goodnight, love you guys, see you bright and early in the morning.

  • I plan to wake up bright and early to enjoy a peaceful breakfast before the day starts.

Synonyms

early
vsbright and early
∞ 1.0

Before the usual or expected time

occurs very near sunrise or at the start of the day

Antonyms

∞ 1.0

After the usual or planned time

How Early

small hours
4 4.9
predawn
8 3.0
dawn
386 1.0
bright and early
  • Informal
22 2.7
early
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

bright and early positive

Morphology

bright + and + early

The meaning 'very early in the morning' is directly derivable from the constituents: 'early' denotes an earlier-than-usual time and 'bright' evokes daylight or a fresh morning, functioning as an intensifier. This compositional logic is straightforward and mirrors common cross-linguistic patterns, so a B1 learner who knows the words will readily infer the MWE meaning.

Etymology

Bright and early may come from the simple picture of a fresh, sunny morning where the day is bright and it is still early; people would wake up at that clear time. That's why the phrase now means 'very early in the morning'.