bred
ˈbred 
; breeding
; breeding
1
: to produce (offspring) by hatching or gestation
yet every mother breeds not sons alike—
Shakespeare
Shakespeare2
a
: beget sense 1
He bred a daughter.
3
biology
: to propagate (plants or animals) sexually and usually under controlled conditions
bred several strains of corn together to produce a superior variety
4
5
a
: mate entry 4 sense 3
the business of breeding cattle
a horse that is bred to a donkey
b
: to mate with : inseminate
c
: impregnate sense 2
delivered her kittens 63 days after being bred
6
physics
: to produce (a fissionable element) by bombarding a nonfissionable element with neutrons from a radioactive element
2
: to propagate animals or plants
1
biology
: a group of usually domesticated animals or plants presumably related by descent from common ancestors and visibly similar in most characters
exotic breeds of cats
retrievers and other popular dog breeds
2
: a number of persons of the same stock (see stock entry 1 sense 4a(1))
Synonyms
Examples of breed in a Sentence
Verb
He got into the business of breeding cattle.
The plants are bred to resist disease and drought.
She believes that we are breeding a generation of children who know nothing about the history of their country.
Noun
The collie is a working breed.
a new breed of athlete
Recent Examples on the WebAmrita Khalid, The Verge, 12 Apr. 2024
The uprising bred a new sense of independence among Ukrainians, thanks in part to the role played by the Orthodox Church.
—Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 10 Apr. 2024
The district’s decision to fight the fines bred even more distrust with D91 Taxpayers, which said the district was wasting money on legal bills.
—Becca Savransky, ProPublica, 9 Apr. 2024
The policy, though undoubtedly restrictive given football’s current financial climate, breeds a unique relationship of unity and oneness between players and fans unlike anywhere else.
—Matias Grez, CNN, 9 Apr. 2024
Over 120 dogs that had been bred and trained to fight were rescued from multiple properties, according to Platkin.
—Joseph P. Smith, USA TODAY, 7 Apr. 2024
Some wildlife scientists believe that the now-infamous decline is being spurred on by seasons that start too early in the Spring, when Toms are still breeding hens that haven’t begun to incubate their eggs.
—Travis Hall, Field & Stream, 4 Apr. 2024
Those coming to breed for the first time arrive several weeks later.
—Jennifer Dixon, Detroit Free Press, 28 Mar. 2024
The baby baboon was purposely bred as part of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Species Survival Plan, which is meant to ensure the survival of Himalayan baboons.
—John Metcalfe, The Mercury News, 28 Mar. 2024
The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, arkansasonline.com, 7 Apr. 2024
Unlike cellphone batteries, which consume much of the volume and weight of the overall product, the new breed of stretchable batteries is expected to be virtually invisible.
—IEEE Spectrum, 5 Apr. 2024
Essentially, a good rule of thumb for the size is to follow how big the dog breed is between small, medium, and large.
—Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 3 Apr. 2024
From helping with copy editing to surfacing insights buried in vast troves of data, the latest breed of AI can and in some cases already is equipping journalists with powerful tools to elevate their craft.
—Jackie Snow, Quartz, 28 Mar. 2024
The flexibility to ideate and run with new ideas breeds proactivity, an important driving force for promotion.
—Alan Price, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Germany’s agriculture ministry denied that the new draft bill would amount to a ban on particular breeds, including the sausage dog.
—Frederik Pleitgen, CNN, 27 Mar. 2024
While my dog weighs only 30 pounds, shoppers with larger breeds similarly praised the bed for its joint support benefits.
—Ali Faccenda, Peoplemag, 27 Mar. 2024
Here's a snapshot of the top 10 breeds this year: After Frenchies, the most common breeds registered were Labs, golden retrievers, German shepherds and poodles.
—CBS News, 20 Mar. 2024
Verb
Players go on increasingly difficult raids to capture exotic and hard-to-find monsters, with the goal of training, battling, and, in some cases, even breeding them.
—Amrita Khalid, The Verge, 12 Apr. 2024
The uprising bred a new sense of independence among Ukrainians, thanks in part to the role played by the Orthodox Church.
—Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 10 Apr. 2024
The district’s decision to fight the fines bred even more distrust with D91 Taxpayers, which said the district was wasting money on legal bills.
—Becca Savransky, ProPublica, 9 Apr. 2024
The policy, though undoubtedly restrictive given football’s current financial climate, breeds a unique relationship of unity and oneness between players and fans unlike anywhere else.
—Matias Grez, CNN, 9 Apr. 2024
Over 120 dogs that had been bred and trained to fight were rescued from multiple properties, according to Platkin.
—Joseph P. Smith, USA TODAY, 7 Apr. 2024
Some wildlife scientists believe that the now-infamous decline is being spurred on by seasons that start too early in the Spring, when Toms are still breeding hens that haven’t begun to incubate their eggs.
—Travis Hall, Field & Stream, 4 Apr. 2024
Those coming to breed for the first time arrive several weeks later.
—Jennifer Dixon, Detroit Free Press, 28 Mar. 2024
The baby baboon was purposely bred as part of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Species Survival Plan, which is meant to ensure the survival of Himalayan baboons.
—John Metcalfe, The Mercury News, 28 Mar. 2024
Noun
The breed tends to roam so should be kept in a secure fence.
—The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, arkansasonline.com, 7 Apr. 2024
Unlike cellphone batteries, which consume much of the volume and weight of the overall product, the new breed of stretchable batteries is expected to be virtually invisible.
—IEEE Spectrum, 5 Apr. 2024
Essentially, a good rule of thumb for the size is to follow how big the dog breed is between small, medium, and large.
—Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 3 Apr. 2024
From helping with copy editing to surfacing insights buried in vast troves of data, the latest breed of AI can and in some cases already is equipping journalists with powerful tools to elevate their craft.
—Jackie Snow, Quartz, 28 Mar. 2024
The flexibility to ideate and run with new ideas breeds proactivity, an important driving force for promotion.
—Alan Price, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Germany’s agriculture ministry denied that the new draft bill would amount to a ban on particular breeds, including the sausage dog.
—Frederik Pleitgen, CNN, 27 Mar. 2024
While my dog weighs only 30 pounds, shoppers with larger breeds similarly praised the bed for its joint support benefits.
—Ali Faccenda, Peoplemag, 27 Mar. 2024
Here's a snapshot of the top 10 breeds this year: After Frenchies, the most common breeds registered were Labs, golden retrievers, German shepherds and poodles.
—CBS News, 20 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'breed.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near breed
Cite this Entry
“Breed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/breed. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
breed
1 of 2 verb
bred
ˈbred
; breeding
; breeding
1
: to produce (plants or animals) by sexual reproduction
breed cattle
2
: to produce offspring by sexual reproduction
3
: bring up sense 1, train
born and bred in this town
4
: bring about, cause
familiarity breeds contempt
5
: to produce (a fissionable element) by bombarding an element that is not fissionable with neutrons from a radioactive element so that more fissionable material is produced than is used up
breeder
noun
Medical Definition
breed
1 of 2 verb
bred
ˈbred
; breeding
; breeding
1
: to produce (offspring) by hatching or gestation
2
: to propagate (plants or animals) sexually and usually under controlled conditions
3
2
: to propagate animals or plants
breed
2 of 2 noun
: a group of animals or plants presumably related by descent from common ancestors and visibly similar in most characters
especially
: such a group differentiated from the wild type under domestication
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