Main Entry: ¹breed

Pronunciation: \ˈbrēd\

Function: verb

Inflected Form(s): bred \ˈbred\; breed·ing

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

Date: before 12th century

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 elementintransitive verb 1 a : to produce offspring by sexual union b : copulate, mate
2 : to propagate animals or plants