Bro culture is everywhere these days, from film (I Love You, Man) to politics (Joe Biden, bro!). So if you haven't unleashed the bro within, here's how
Bro Function noun
Inflected form(s) plural bros, sometimes brose
Etymology Originally from the Middle English ("I knowe ynogh, on even and abrowe"— G. Chaucer); evolved during the '60s as "brother," used by AfricanAmericans to indicate a shared history of struggle. Now used a lot by white guys to indicate a shared history of that time you puked at White Castle.
Definition Look within. Look deeper. Yeah, right there. See that little dude in flipflops giving you a chest bump That's your inner bro. You must come to love him. Because this, if you haven't noticed, is the Brolden Age of Bro, bro! (See I Love You, Man or the sadly canceled Bromance on MTV if you don't believe us.) And whether or not you want to admit it, whether or not you even realize it yet, you are a freaking brotastic brovatar of brohood, and—
"Wait," you say. "Before you go on, I have two questions."
"Number one, what is a bro Is it someone who says 'bro' a lot Is it someone who fistbumps Is it someone who was Is it someone who wakes up at noon and eats Cheerios with warm Budweiser"
We admit, it may be an unanswerable question. A koan. But here's our stab at an answer Your bro is the part of you that's not housetrained. It's the part of you that bubbles to the surface at a bachelor party or when you're watching The Hangover or when you're reading a Philip Roth novel. Sabbath's Theater, in particular.
"Now that I know what a bro is and can sense his hairytoed presence inside me, what do I do about it"
You must set him free, bro. But not too free. (That's how you end up like Zach Galifianakis.)
To help you on your journey, here's your GQ guide to spotting a bro—plus a taxonomy of his many species.