From Old English 'bryne,' of uncertain deeper origin—an unusually isolated word in English with few cognates.
Water saturated or strongly impregnated with salt, used for preserving food or occurring naturally in salt lakes and seas.
From Old English 'bryne,' of uncertain further origin—possibly from Proto-Germanic *brīnō. No clear cognates survive in other Germanic languages, making this an unusually isolated English word. It may be related to 'burn' through the sensation of salt on wounds. Key