brownie

American  

[brou-nee] / ˈbraʊ ni /

noun

1. (in folklore) a tiny, fanciful, good-natured brown elf who secretly helps at night with household chores.

2. a small, chewy, cakelike cookie, usually made with chocolate and containing nuts.

3. Australian. a bread with currants, baked in a camp oven.

4. Sometimes Brownie a member of the junior division of the Girl Scouts or the Girl Guides, being a girl in the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd grade and usually between six and eight years old.

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brownie ¹ British  

/ ˈbraʊnɪ /

noun

1. (in folklore) an elf said to do helpful work at night, esp household chores

2. a small square nutty chocolate cake

3. history a bread made with currants

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Brownie ² British  

/ ˈbraʊnɪ /

noun

1. another name for Brownie Guide

2. (formerly) a popular make of simple box camera

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Usage

What is a brownie? A brownie is a small, chewy chocolate cake-like dessert that often includes nuts, as in We loved Nana’s brownies so much that we begged her to make them for every party. In British folklore, a brownie is a tiny, brown elf that secretly assists with chores during the night, as in I once heard a fairy tale about a brownie who helped a cobbler clean his workshop.  Example: The first thing I learned to bake was brownies, and I still love to bake them.

Related Words

See fairy.

Etymology

Origin of brownie

First recorded in 1520–30; brown + -ie; in folkloric sense, originally Scots

Example Sentences

"I didn't really know what a cake or a doughnut or a brownie was until I started having after-school parties in California," she says.

From BBC • Mar. 28, 2026

In fact, craving something sweet, I just grabbed a post-lunch packaged brownie from WSJ’s snack-food stash.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 20, 2026

Suddenly, it’s a nut dessert with a brownie supporting role.

From Salon • Mar. 5, 2026

Packed inside the Blean Bakery Box are cookies for £3.50 in an assortment of unusual flavours, and tubs of dunkable cookies with dips from candyfloss to brownie - all baked by Annabelle Cox.

From BBC • Nov. 8, 2025

I open the freezer and pull out a tub of Heath bar brownie ice cream.

From "Invisible Inkling" by Emily Jenkins