breed

1 of 2

verb

bred ˈbred How to pronounce breed (audio) ; breeding

transitive verb

1
: to produce (offspring) by hatching or gestation
yet every mother breeds not sons alikeShakespeare
2
a
: beget sense 1
He bred a daughter.
b
: produce, engender
despair often breeds violence
3
biology : to propagate (plants or animals) sexually and usually under controlled conditions
bred several strains of corn together to produce a superior variety
4
a
: bring up, nurture
We were born and bred in the country.
b
: to inculcate by training
breed good manners into one's children
5
a
: mate entry 4 sense 3
the business of breeding cattle
a horse that is bred to a donkey
b
: to mate with : inseminate
c
: impregnate sense 2
delivered her kittens 63 days after being bred
6
physics : to produce (a fissionable element) by bombarding a nonfissionable element with neutrons from a radioactive element

intransitive verb

1
a
: to produce offspring by sexual union
places where mosquitoes breed
b
2
: to propagate animals or plants

breed

2 of 2

noun

1
biology : a group of usually domesticated animals or plants presumably related by descent from common ancestors and visibly similar in most characters
exotic breeds of cats
retrievers and other popular dog breeds
2
: a number of persons of the same stock (see stock entry 1 sense 4a(1))
3
: class, kind
a new breed of athlete
such people are a dying breed

Examples of breed in a Sentence

Verb He got into the business of breeding cattle. The plants are bred to resist disease and drought. She believes that we are breeding a generation of children who know nothing about the history of their country. Noun The collie is a working breed. a new breed of athlete
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
North Atlantic right whales historically started breeding by around 9 years of age and gave birth to a single calf every three to four years thereafter for several decades. Joshua Reed, The Conversation, 13 Mar. 2024 The stream of workers, like Mr. Lang, trading cities for suburbia has bred fears among economists about the possibility of a doom loop: Fewer workers commute downtown, which means less business for shops and a diminished sense of safety, which means even fewer people want to commute downtown. Emma Goldberg, New York Times, 4 Mar. 2024 New responsibilities exist amongst your direct reports that can breed anxiety, stress, frustration and the like. Brandi Watterson, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024 Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but the abandonment, if confirmed, will breed plenty of schadenfreude: billions spent with little to show, all the while pivoting to a different breed of Silicon Valley hype. Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 28 Feb. 2024 The Prime Minister acknowledged that a lack of rule of law can breed corruption and injustice, hampering the country's progress. Zenger News, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024 Guano produced from breeding bird colonies provides nutrients for marine invertebrates and fish, for instance. Susanne Rust, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2024 Social media pages dedicated to petty tea-spilling have become more prevalent, content moderation on platforms like X and Instagram has historically been complicated (to say the least), and the new attention economy online has bred a culture where more people can be kinda famous than ever before. Mankaprr Conteh, Rolling Stone, 24 Feb. 2024 Yet donkeys only breed a foal every couple of years. Siyi Zhao, New York Times, 23 Feb. 2024
Noun
Below are the nation's top five most popular dog breeds and more about them according to AKC's website. USA TODAY, 21 Mar. 2024 But there is an altogether different breed of Scrabble player. Joe Heim, Washington Post, 17 Mar. 2024 Harrison doesn’t have an overall diagnosis beyond being a French bulldog — an increasingly popular breed prone to health problems. Thalia Beaty, Quartz, 17 Mar. 2024 Having a large breed dog in such a spiritual place like Japan, with all its temples and shrines, is unique. Rachel Chang and Thomas Panek, Travel + Leisure, 10 Mar. 2024 The free event will feature more than 100 varieties of baby chick breeds and will teach about raising a backyard flock. Linda McIntosh, San Diego Union-Tribune, 2 Mar. 2024 Heritage Foods, which sells meat and poultry from heritage breeds produced by farmers throughout the country, is now selling chicken parts and whole birds from the Good Shepherd Network that have been allowed to mature for at least a year longer than is typical of the usual broiler. Florence Fabricant, New York Times, 27 Feb. 2024 Some female lizards were found pregnant, indicating the species breeds in July. Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 7 Mar. 2024 Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but the abandonment, if confirmed, will breed plenty of schadenfreude: billions spent with little to show, all the while pivoting to a different breed of Silicon Valley hype. Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 28 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'breed.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English breden, from Old English brēdan; akin to Old English brōd brood

Noun

noun derivative of breed entry 1

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun

1553, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of breed was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near breed

Cite this Entry

“Breed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/breed. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

breed

1 of 2 verb
bred ˈbred How to pronounce breed (audio) ; breeding
1
: to produce (plants or animals) by sexual reproduction
breed cattle
2
: to produce offspring by sexual reproduction
3
: bring up sense 1, train
born and bred in this town
4
: bring about, cause
familiarity breeds contempt
5
: to produce (a fissionable element) by bombarding an element that is not fissionable with neutrons from a radioactive element so that more fissionable material is produced than is used up
breeder noun

breed

2 of 2 noun
1
: a group of animals or plants usually found only under human care and different from related kinds
a breed of cattle
2
: kind, class

Medical Definition

breed

1 of 2 verb
bred ˈbred How to pronounce breed (audio) ; breeding

transitive verb

1
: to produce (offspring) by hatching or gestation
2
: to propagate (plants or animals) sexually and usually under controlled conditions
3
a
: mate
b
: to mate with : inseminate

intransitive verb

1
a
: to produce offspring by sexual union
b
2
: to propagate animals or plants

breed

2 of 2 noun
: a group of animals or plants presumably related by descent from common ancestors and visibly similar in most characters
especially : such a group differentiated from the wild type under domestication

More from Merriam-Webster on breed

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