breeding ground

noun

Updated on: 13 Apr 2018

Definition of breeding ground

1 : the place to which animals go to breed

2 : a place or set of circumstances suitable for or favorable to growth and development

hurricane breeding grounds

See breeding ground defined for English-language learners

Examples of breeding ground in a Sentence

a breeding ground for seals
The Gulf of Mexico is a breeding ground for hurricanes.
The company's casual atmosphere serves as a breeding ground for innovation.

Recent Examples of breeding ground from the Web

For two to three weeks between mid-May and mid-June, the park becomes a breeding ground for Photuris frontalis fireflies (also known as the Snappy Single Sync species), who put on what is arguably one of nature’s more beautiful lightshows.

— jennifer billock, Smithsonian, "This Is the Best Place in North America to See Synchronous Fireflies," 3 Apr. 2018
Texas is a breeding ground for lightning and has the numbers to prove it: Never miss a local story.

— bill hanna, star-telegram, "Texas leads the nation in lightning strikes and here's why you should pay attention | Fort Worth Star-Telegram," 27 Mar. 2018
While prisons are now known as potential breeding grounds for radicalization, the French government also plans to better regulate and standardize private schools, most of which are run by religious organizations.

— Washington Post, "France unveils broad new plan to tackle radicalization," 23 Feb. 2018
Schools: Potential breeding grounds for future employees include Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Pittsburgh and Duquesne University.

— New York Times, "Where Amazon May Build Its New Headquarters," 18 Jan. 2018
But one liberal activist groups says, the military program is just a breeding ground for violence and war.

— Fox News, "Man acquitted in Kate Steinle death fights federal charges," 16 Mar. 2018
If temperatures were to rise by 4.5 degrees Celsius, animals like African elephants would likely lack sufficient water supplies and 96% of all breeding ground for tigers in India's Sundarbans region could be submerged in water.

— joshua berlinger, CNN, "Global warming puts nearly half of species in key places at risk: report," 13 Mar. 2018
Now, new data paints a clearer picture as to why the country appears to be a breeding ground for drug resistant infections that threaten to spread within and beyond the country.

— beth mole, Ars Technica, "Insane drug cocktails in India net drug makers millions and pose global threat," 6 Feb. 2018
Connecticut has long been fecund breeding ground for top-tier hockey players — think Jonathan Quick, Nick Bonino and Chris Drury — and the Nutmeg State was put on the map when Yale and Quinnipiac squared off in the 2013 Frozen Four championship.

— kevin vellturo, courant.com, "UConn Insider Podcast: Men's Hockey Coach Mike Cavanaugh," 8 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'breeding ground.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.