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Anonymous Posted 13 years ago
Vocabulary

"to brook no argument"

I found this phrase in my Oxford dictionary. It was used in the sentence: "His voice brooks no argument" and means (according to the same dictionary) that judging by the person's voice, he won't tolerate any arguments.

I've asked several people and no one had heard it before.

I was wondering if it is ok to use the phrase in creative writing (I'm writing a story in which I want to use it).

Thank you for help.
  

Top answer

" If you just say "his voice brooks no argument", you're asking the reader to fill in the blanks and surmise what sort of voice it is. " is plain English of a quite literary kind. Please don't keep the name of your dictionary a secret.

— Enoon

  • " If you just say "his voice brooks no argument", you're asking the reader to fill in the blanks and surmise what sort of voice it is.
  • " is plain English of a quite literary kind.
  • Please don't keep the name of your dictionary a secret.
  • I would like to verify that what you report is correct.
  • ".
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13 Answers
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It would normally be something like "the tone of his voice brooks no argument" or "his bellow brooks ...." If you just say "his voice brooks no argument", you're asking the reader to fill in the blanks and surmise what sort of voice it is. Still, "brook no argument/delay/defiance/etc." is plain English of a quite literary kind.

Please don't keep the name of your dictionary a secret. I wou
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Thank you for your response.

The dictionary is a multimedia Oxford dictionary on a CD which I got from a friend of mine. I'll try to find the original CD and will hopefully be able to give you more information.

I was going to use the same verb to say that someone's face "brooks no argument" - in other words - judging by their face expression, they won't listen to any other opinio
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Anonymous I found this phrase in my Oxford dictionary. It was used in the sentence: "His voice brooks no argument" and means (according to the same dictionary) that judging by the person's voice, he won't tolerate any arguments.
I've asked several people and no one had heard it before.
I was wondering if it is ok to use the phrase in creative writing (I'm writing
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Yes, that's fine to use. It's not a very, very unusual expression.

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My birth-right is Scottish & English. I grew up with this phrase, heard many times as listed,plus "I/he/she will brook no interference". I heard it with different final wording. I took it to mean that whoever will not stand/tolerate any deviation from what the person has stated, or an experience they are now giving answer to with defiance. I hope this helps.

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I just heard the phrase in an episode from the TV series "Call the Midwife".

"And I will brook no argument," the nurse tells the usually-unaccepting Sister, upon offering her a car ride.

As in the post before, it means not entertaining any argument.

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I find I use it with the word "nonsense" as much as anything else. Btw, chalk file 80, there's no need to hyphenate "usually unaccepting." Don't know how America got into the habit of hyphenating adverbs...

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I encountered the phrase: "brook no quarter" in a text published by Alcoholics Anonymous and in that context, it refers to the unconditional demand that the alcoholic must completely abstain from alcohol, with no provision for any libation. It has been proven that this is the only means by which recovery and health can be regained , and those who would continue to partake are offered no shelt

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I have not heard this exact phrase before but I am fully in favor of using words in ways that carry meaning. What I mean is, inventing a creative way to say something is the joy of being a writer. The words you are suggesting sound correct to me. I’m reminded of the words “I don’t suffer fools gladly” which means “ I speak truth to fools” (even if they’re powerful).

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I would consider who your target reader is. As an older academic I am familiar with the expression. I think my adult college educated daughters would understand the expression. Not sure if younger or less well read folks would get it. Context clues would probably help

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