bream

1 of 2

noun

ˈbrim  ˈbrēm 

plural bream or breams

1

: a bronze-colored European freshwater cyprinid fish (Abramis brama)

broadly : any of various related fishes

2

a

: any of various marine fish (family Sparidae) related to the porgy

called also sea bream

b

: any of various freshwater sunfishes (Lepomis and related genera)

especially : bluegill

bream

2 of 2

verb

ˈbrēm 

breamed; breaming; breams

transitive verb

: to clean (a ship's bottom) by heating and scraping

Examples of bream in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The Gulf of Thailand is teeming with seafood: mackerel, sardines, bream and squid. —Ryan Kellman, NPR, 27 Mar. 2026

Red-and-white spherical bobbers resist being dragged underwater with light-striking fish like crappie and bream. —Bryan Hendricks, Arkansas Online, 22 Feb. 2026

Verb

With the surf rolling below, briny starters lead the way: bream with ratatouille or confit salmon in lemongrass broth. —Lewis Nunn, Forbes.com, 15 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English breme, from Anglo-French, of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German brahsima bream, Middle High German brehen to shine

Verb

probably from Dutch brem furze; from the use of burning furze in the cleaning

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1626, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing bream

• sea bream

Rhymes for bream

• beam
• cream
• creme
• deem
• dream
• gleam
• meme
• ream
• scheme
• scream
• seam
• seem

Kids Definition

bream

noun

ˈbrim, 

ˈbrēm

plural bream or breams

1

: any of various freshwater fishes

especially : any of several sunfishes (as a bluegill)

2

: any of several saltwater fishes related to the porgy