The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Brake \Brake\, n. [OE. brake fern; cf. AS. bracce fern, LG.
   brake willow bush, Da. bregne fern, G. brach fallow; prob.
   orig. the growth on rough, broken ground, fr. the root of E.
   break. See Break, v. t., cf. Bracken, and 2d Brake, n.]
   [1913 Webster]
   1. (Bot.) A fern of the genus Pteris, esp. the Pteris
      aquilina, common in almost all countries. It has solitary
      stems dividing into three principal branches. Less
      properly: Any fern.
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   2. A thicket; a place overgrown with shrubs and brambles,
      with undergrowth and ferns, or with canes.
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            Rounds rising hillocks, brakes obscure and rough,
            To shelter thee from tempest and from rain. --Shak.
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            He stayed not for brake, and he stopped not for
            stone.                                --Sir W.
                                                  Scott.
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   Cane brake, a thicket of canes. See Canebrake.
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