An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/Brut

by Friedrich Kluge

Brut, feminine, ‘brood, spawn, brats,’ from Middle High German and Old High German bruot, feminine, ‘vivified by warmth, brood, animation by warmth, brooding, heat’; compare Dutch broed, Anglo-Saxon brôd. English brood. The dental is derivative; brô, as the root-syllable, is discussed under Brühe; the primary root signified ‘to warm, heat.’ —