breed

American  

[breed] / brid /

verb (used with object)

bred, breeding

1. to produce (offspring); procreate; engender.

   Synonyms:

   generate, bear, beget

2. to produce by mating; propagate sexually; reproduce.

   Ten mice were bred in the laboratory.

   Synonyms:

   generate, bear, beget

3. Horticulture.

   1. to cause to reproduce by controlled pollination.

   2. to improve by controlled pollination and selection.

4. to raise (cattle, sheep, etc.).

   He breeds longhorns on the ranch.

5. to cause or be the source of; engender; give rise to.

   Dirt breeds disease. Stagnant water breeds mosquitoes.

   Synonyms:

   develop, induce, produce, foster, occasion, promote

6. to develop by training or education; bring up; rear.

   He was born and bred a gentleman.

7. Energy. to produce more fissile nuclear fuel than is consumed in a reactor.

8. to impregnate; mate.

   Breed a strong mare with a fast stallion and hope for a Derby winner.

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verb (used without object)

bred, breeding

1. to produce offspring.

   Many animals breed in the spring.

2. to be engendered or produced; grow; develop.

   Bacteria will not breed in alcohol.

3. to cause the birth of young, as in raising stock.

4. to be pregnant.

noun

1. Genetics. a relatively homogenous group of animals within a species, developed and maintained by humans.

2. lineage; stock; strain.

   She comes from a fine breed of people.

   Synonyms:

   line, pedigree, family

3. sort; kind; group.

   Scholars are a quiet breed.

4. Disparaging and Offensive. half-breed.

breed British  

/ briːd /

verb

1. to bear (offspring)

2. (tr) to bring up; raise

3. to produce or cause to produce by mating; propagate

4. to produce and maintain new or improved strains of (domestic animals and plants)

5. to produce or be produced; generate

   to breed trouble

   violence breeds in densely populated areas

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noun

1. a group of organisms within a species, esp a group of domestic animals, originated and maintained by man and having a clearly defined set of characteristics

2. a lineage or race

   a breed of Europeans

3. a kind, sort, or group

   a special breed of hatred

breed Scientific  

/ brēd /

1. To produce or reproduce by giving birth or hatching.

2. To raise animals or plants, often to produce new or improved types.

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1. A group of organisms having common ancestors and sharing certain traits that are not shared with other members of the same species. Breeds are usually produced by mating selected parents.

breed Idioms  

1. see familiarity breeds contempt.

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Other Word Forms

• breedable adjective
• overbreed verb (used with object)
• rebreed verb
• subbreed noun

Etymology

Origin of breed

before 1000; Middle English breden, Old English brēdan to nourish (cognate with Old High German bruotan, German brüten ); noun use from 16th century

Example Sentences

Researchers selected 23 hybrid tortoises with the closest genetic links to the extinct subspecies and began breeding them in captivity on Santa Cruz island.

From BBC

A centre that has been dedicated to the breeding and welfare of rare horses for centuries said it would be cutting back its public facilities due to high costs.

From BBC

The death toll is even higher in France and Spain, where many of the seabird populations that breed in the UK spend the winter, raising fears of catastrophic seabird "wreck".

From BBC

Harrop has English parents and could have represented Team GB but opted to compete for France, where she was born and bred.

From BBC

Spending the money to purchase more female cattle for breeding is too big a financial gamble if grazing pastures dry up again and he has to buy more feed.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• beget
• create
• engender
• give birth to
• hatch
• induce
• multiply
• produce
• propagate
• reproduce