Home US English Braille

Definition of Braille in English:

Braille

Pronunciation /brāl/ /breɪl/

Translate Braille into Spanish

noun

  • A form of written language for blind people, in which characters are represented by patterns of raised dots that are felt with the fingertips.

    ‘she taught herself Braille’
    • ‘all the plants are labeled in Braille’
    • ‘Braille medicine labels’
    • ‘Both of the references to language, in Braille and phonetic code, are veiled in such a way that language doesn't become the vehicle through which you arrive at a certain set of information.’
    • ‘Since the process of printing pictures in Braille involves heating special paper is required.’
    • ‘The signage (including pictogram, Braille and raised character) depicts parents, a child and a wheelchair.’
    • ‘The Visually Impaired National Library for the Blind loans books written in Braille to blind people and also runs a beginner's programme in Braille or Moon.’
    • ‘He read in Braille, mainly textbooks translated into finger-touch words by prisoners in Arbour Hill jail.’
    • ‘The four-volume 512-page book has been brought out in Braille after its success in several Indian languages and a few foreign languages like Chinese and Korean.’
    • ‘Important municipal information must also be available in Braille format for the visually impaired.’
    • ‘Most of the classics are available in Braille, but the more obscure texts are not, and all the class handouts had to be scanned for me.’
    • ‘Since it opened I went along with a visually impaired member of the committee to sample the notice board in Braille.’
    • ‘Included in the display are both Braille and jumbo-sized playing cards, as well as other classic games which have been retextured, enlarged or recreated in Braille.’
    • ‘The nine volumes of ‘The Half-Blood Prince’ in Braille weighs about 11 pounds.’
    • ‘The last series has also been published in Braille.’
    • ‘And so she likes to follow what happens to Hermione, but she prefers to read it in Braille and not listen to it on audiotape.’
    • ‘But, pursuing higher education proves to be a challenging task for them due to the acute shortage of textbooks in Braille.’
    • ‘He was faced with the challenge of learning a new way of writing and reading in Braille and had to cope with his visual impairment emotionally.’
    • ‘Drivers will draw lots and be assigned a navigator who will be handed over a map with the route in Braille.’
    • ‘Artifact descriptions are etched in Braille into glass lecterns in the National Museum of Colombia, and photosensor-activated handrails trigger audio narrations.’
    • ‘The swings have backs to support riders with no upper body strength; many signs are in Braille, and the soft, springy ground is surfaced with recycled tires.’
    • ‘Good examples of such ‘active touch’ include reading of Braille characters and the sorting and selecting of objects in a pocket, out of sight.’
    • ‘In 1996, researchers reported that the visual cortex at the back of the brain showed increased activity when blind people use the tips of their fingers to read Braille publications.’

transitive verb

[with object]

  • Print or transcribe in Braille.

    ‘a select list of new books have been Brailled and added to stock’
    • ‘The software is installed in a Braille Lite-a small, portable Braille note taker that is equipped with synthetic speech and a refreshable Brailled display.’
    • ‘Audio textbooks can be produced much faster and cheaper than Brailled books, and can be used by students with varying print disabilities.’
    • ‘My visually impaired junior assistant helped the group get started on Brailling the alphabet.’

Origin

Mid 19th century from the name of Louis Braille (see Braille, Louis).