breed

¹breed

verb \ˈbrēd\

bred \ˈbred\ breed·ing

Definition of BREED

transitive verb

1

: to produce (offspring) by hatching or gestation

2

a : beget 1

b : produce, engender <despair often breeds violence>

3

: 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 <born and bred in the country>

b : to inculcate by training <breed good manners into one's children>

5

a : ⁴mate 3

b : to mate with : inseminate

c : impregnate 2

6

: 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

b : copulate, mate

2

: to propagate animals or plants

Examples of BREED

1. He got into the business of breeding cattle.
2. The plants are bred to resist disease and drought.
3. She believes that we are breeding a generation of children who know nothing about the history of their country.

Origin of BREED

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

First Known Use: before 12th century

Related to BREED

Synonyms

procreate, multiply, propagate, reproduce

Related Words

bear, beget, engender, gender, generate, get, have, mother, parent, produce, sire; hatch, spawn

Near Antonyms

abuse, ill-treat, ill-use, maltreat, mishandle, mistreat; ignore, neglect; harm, hurt, injure

Rhymes with BREED

bead, Bede, bleed, brede, cede, creed, deed, feed, Gide, gleed, greed, heed, keyed, knead, kneed, lead, mead, Mead, Mede, meed, need, plead, read, rede, reed, screed, seed, Snead, speed, steed, swede, treed, tweed, weed

²breed

noun

Definition of BREED

1

: a group of usually domesticated animals or plants presumably related by descent from common ancestors and visibly similar in most characters

2

: a number of persons of the same stock

3

: class, kind <a new breed of athlete>

Examples of BREED

1. The collie is a working breed.
2. a new breed of athlete

First Known Use of BREED

1553

Related to BREED

Synonyms

sort, class, description, feather, genre, ilk, kidney, kind, like, manner, nature, order, species, strain, stripe, type, variety

Related Words

model; sample, specimen; bracket, bunch, category, division, family, grade, group, grouping, lot, persuasion, rank(s), set, suite

Other Genetics Terms

chimera, hermaphrodite, plasticity