Noun : a brace of grouse.    From Dictionary.com. 

Verb (used with object) : He braces himself when the ship rolls. Brace yourself for some bad news.    From Dictionary.com. 

This can be seen in figure 39 in a transitional-type bitstock (accession 319556) from the Low Countries.    From Wordnik.com.  [Woodworking Tools 1600-1900] Reference

In a like manner, the 18th-century bitstock of Flemish origin (fig. 46), the English cabinetmaker's bevel of the same century (fig. 47), and the compass saw (accession 61.52, fig. 48) capture in their basic design something beyond the functional extension of the craftsman's hand.    From Wordnik.com.  [Woodworking Tools 1600-1900] Reference

For example, in 1852, Jacob Switzer of Basil, Ohio, suggested, as had Roubo a hundred years earlier, that the bitstock be used as a screwdriver (fig. 42); but far more interesting than Switzer's idea was his delineation of the brace itself, which he described as "an ordinary brace and bit stock" (U.S. pat.    From Wordnik.com.  [Woodworking Tools 1600-1900] Reference

Roubo (fig. 40) illustrated a metal bitstock in.    From Wordnik.com.  [Woodworking Tools 1600-1900] Reference

Sheffield bitstock appeared.    From Wordnik.com.  [Woodworking Tools 1600-1900] Reference