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Glite Dictionary
high brass

high brass

8.4
A yellow metal made from copper mixed with a lot of zinc
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : latón de alta calidad
  • The manufacturer uses high brass in their premium instruments for better quality.

Examples

  • The valves are made from high brass for increased durability.

  • The musician prefers to play instruments made of high brass.

  • She preferred working with high brass due to its bright, yellow color.

  • Can you identify the high brass in this composition?

  • The manufacturer uses high brass in their premium instruments for better quality.

  • The valves are made from high brass for increased durability.

  • She preferred working with high brass due to its bright, yellow color.

Synonyms

alpha brass
vshigh brass
  • Specialized
8.1

A type of brass metal that bends easily without heating

focuses on a typical composition near 35 percent zinc rather than workability

Surface Forms

high brass singular
high brasses plural

Morphology

high + brass

The phrase denotes a kind of brass and can be partially derived from 'high' (above normal amount) + 'brass' (the alloy), so a learner can infer it means brass with a higher proportion of some component. However, the exact metallurgical sense (specific zinc percentage) and which component is 'high' is specialist knowledge and not fully predictable to a B1 learner, so the transparency is partial.

Etymology

The term high brass comes from metalworkers who called brass that was high in zinc by that name. Brass is a metal mixture of copper and zinc, and when it has more zinc it looks brighter and is harder, so high brass means brass with more zinc used for brighter, stronger objects.