Brisbane

B3R1I1S1B3A1N1E1
/ˈbɹɪzbən//ˈbɹɪzbeɪn/

proper noun

A large city, the capital city of Queensland, Australia.

Similar
BrissieBrizzieBrisvegas
OriginOld English bān ← Proto-West Germanic *bain ← Proto-Germanic *bainą →
CommonScrabble 12
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Meanings

proper noun
  1. A large city, the capital city of Queensland, Australia.

    Synonyms: Brissie, Brizzie, Brisvegas

  2. A local government area in Queensland, the largest by population in Australia; in full, the City of Brisbane.
  3. A river that flows through the city in Queensland; in full, the Brisbane River.
  4. A city in San Mateo County, California, United States.

Synonyms & antonyms

proper nounA large city, the capital city of Queensland, Australia.

Similar
BrissieBrizzieBrisvegas

Origin

  1. Proto-Celtic*brestā
  2. Old Irishbresde
  3. Old Irishbrisid
  4. Scottish Gaelicbris
  5. Proto-Indo-European*bʰeyh₂-
  6. Proto-Germanic*bainaz
  7. Proto-Germanic*bainą
  8. Proto-West Germanic*bain
  9. Old Englishbān
  10. EnglishBrisbane

From Scottish Gaelic bris (“break; smash”) + Old English bān (“bone”), a nickname given to someone who was often involved in fights, resulting in the breaking of bones. The city and river in Australia are named after Sir Thomas Brisbane, 1773–1860; governor of New South Wales (which at the time included the area of modern Queensland) from 1821 to 1825.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic بريزبان, بريسبان
  • بريزبان (brīzbān)Capital of Queensland, Australia
  • بريسبان (brīsbān)Capital of Queensland, Australia
  • بْرِيزْبِين (brīzbin)Capital of Queensland, Australia
Bulgarian Бри́збейн
  • Бри́збейн (Brízbejn)Capital of Queensland, Australia
Chinese Mandarin 布里斯班
  • 布里斯班 (Bùlǐsībān)Capital of Queensland, Australia
Dutch Brisbane
  • BrisbaneCapital of Queensland, Australia
Finnish Brisbane
  • BrisbaneCapital of Queensland, Australia
French Brisbane
  • BrisbaneCapital of Queensland, Australia
German Brisbane
  • BrisbaneCapital of Queensland, Australia
Greek Μπρίσμπεϊν, Μπρίσμπαν
  • Μπρίσμπεϊν (Brísmpeïn)Capital of Queensland, Australia
  • Μπρίσμπαν (Brísmpan)Capital of Queensland, Australia
Hebrew בריזביין
  • בריזבייןCapital of Queensland, Australia
Hindi ब्रिस्बेन
  • ब्रिस्बेन (brisben)Capital of Queensland, Australia
Hungarian Brisbane
  • BrisbaneCapital of Queensland, Australia
Japanese ブリスベン, ブリズベン
  • ブリスベン (Burisuben)Capital of Queensland, Australia
  • ブリズベン (Burizuben)Capital of Queensland, Australia
Korean 브리즈번
  • 브리즈번 (Beurijeubeon)Capital of Queensland, Australia
Māori Piripane
  • PiripaneCapital of Queensland, Australia
Persian بریزبن
  • بریزبنCapital of Queensland, Australia
Portuguese Brisbane
  • BrisbaneCapital of Queensland, Australia
Russian Бри́сбен
  • Бри́сбен (Brísben)Capital of Queensland, Australia
Spanish Brisbane
  • BrisbaneCapital of Queensland, Australia
Thai บริสเบน
  • บริสเบน (brìtbayn)Capital of Queensland, Australia
Turkish Brisbane
  • BrisbaneCapital of Queensland, Australia
Ukrainian Брі́сбен
  • Брі́сбен (Brísben)Capital of Queensland, Australia
Urdu برسبین
  • برسبین (brisben)Capital of Queensland, Australia
Vietnamese Brisbane
  • BrisbaneCapital of Queensland, Australia

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with Brisbane

Lisbon
All rhymes →
Cite this entry
APA

Brisbane. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Brisbane

MLA

“Brisbane.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Brisbane. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Brisbane,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Brisbane.

Source: Brisbane on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.