n. — usually plural, historical
fabric or leather straps worn over the shoulders to hold up trousers.
This term was formerly used in Canada as a preservation of British origin. Today it is solely associated with Britain (see the 1995 quotation).
See also COD-2, s.v. "brace" (2), which is marked "Cdn, Brit., Austral., & NZ", and OED-3, s.v. "brace" (n.2(9b)), AHD-5, s.v. "brace", which is marked as "chiefly British".