Has the word "brick" such a meaning? In my childhood I was taught that the word “a brick” has equally with the most spread meaning “a building material” the praising meaning sorta “a good guy”. But when I used this word in the second meaning about 3 years ago, an American that was nearby misunderstood me. Afterwards I asked about this the other native American, my ex pen pal, he wrote me that he’d never heard that the real native speakers used the word “brick” in the meaning “to speak favourably of somebody” and call so only the stones in a wall. Anyway I continue to come across that meaning of the word “brick” in the Russian text-books every now and again. I wonder do they native English speakers use this word in the praising meaning? I was told only by the Americans, probably the people from the UK, Canada, Australia etc. have the other point of view. Why the Russians text-books learn wrong then? Is this meaning may be just an archaism which none of the book authors can substitute?