to shake; to do (some work); to do; to masturbate (another person); to masturbate
“Comme il n'a rien branlé, il reste encore la moitié du boulot à faire.” — Since he hasn't done anything, there's still half the work left to do.
Synonyms: foutre, glander, fabriquer
Inherited from Middle French bransler, from Old French bransler (“to shake (a sword at), move”), a contracted form of brandeler (“to wobble”), from Vulgar Latin *brandus (“firebrand, flaming sword, sword”), ultimately from Frankish *brand (“sword”), from Proto-Germanic *brandaz (“burning, flash, firebrand, flaming sword”). Compare brandish. The supposed intermediary form, Late Latin *brandulare, also from Proto-West Germanic *brand (“sword”), is unlikely given that the suffix -ulāre had already