breadwinner

noun

bread·​win·​ner ˈbred-ˌwi-nər 

plural breadwinners

1

: a member of a family whose wages supply the family's principal or only means of support

the main/primary/sole breadwinner in the family

… many more households have two breadwinners, making it unlikely that there will be someone home all afternoon to cook.

—Mark Bittman

2

: a means (such as a tool, craft, or activity) of livelihood : a way of earning income

Crop diversity kept the overall value of Montana agriculture strong even as wheat, the state agriculture's breadwinner, faltered.

—Tom Lutey

Catfish farming has become the breadwinner industry for many families in west Alabama …

—Robert Dewitt and Benita D. Newton

breadwinning

ˈbred-ˌwi-niŋ 

noun

Examples of breadwinner in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The old breadwinner model no longer explains most professional families. — Gleb Tsipursky, Washington Post, 21 Oct. 2026

Parents want to provide for their kids, but too much working can create distance between the breadwinner and everyone at home. — Tom Roland, Billboard, 24 Sep. 2026

The purpose of the fund is to help families whose breadwinners have been detained by immigration authorities, leaving them without essential income, according to a LULAC press release. — Verónica Egui Brito, Miami Herald, 18 Sep. 2026

Business is good; the results are coming; these women are, in a lot of cases, the breadwinner. — Tilly Berendt, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1614, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for breadwinner

• beginner
• dinner
• inner
• pinner
• sinner
• spinner
• thinner
• tinner
• winner

Kids Definition

breadwinner

noun

bread·​win·​ner ˈbred-ˌwin-ər 

: a person whose wages provide support for his or her family