1
as in propagated
to bring forth offspring
rabbits will breed very frequently unless they're kept separated
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in raised
to bring to maturity through care and education
he was bred to a life in the military by his father, himself an army captain
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in created
to be the cause of (a situation, action, or state of mind)
this habit of favoring one employee over the others will breed resentment
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in slept
to engage in sexual intercourse
cats breeding outside our window made a horrible racket last night
Synonyms & Similar Words
5
as in planted
to set permanently in the consciousness or mind-set
parents who breed in their children a deep respect for people of all classes
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bred
The various bank bailouts during the financial crisis bred a sense among large parts of the Dutch population that they were made to pay for excessive risks taken by greedy bankers.
—
Sarah Jacob, Bloomberg, 27 Jan. 2026
The family has bred and raised several draft horses through the years, growing the herd to as many as 22 at one point on their 40-acre Mountain View Belgians northwest of Longmont.
—Judith Kohler, Denver Post, 24 Jan. 2026
Covid-19 bred doubt about government edicts and skepticism about science, provoking an existential battle for truth.
—Richard Edelman, Time, 18 Jan. 2026
The foreign minister took the opportunity to question whether the uprising that has lasted more than two weeks is a sincere rejection of the Islamic regime’s ideology or general discontent bred by Iran’s economic isolation.
—Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 15 Jan. 2026
Cohen and his colleagues found that mice bred without beige fat had higher blood pressure than mice with that kind of fat—evidence for a causal relationship.
—Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 15 Jan. 2026
The team also acknowledges the possibility that birds from surrounding wildland populations may have moved into the now-quieter city and bred with urban juncos.
—New Atlas, 11 Jan. 2026
Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, birds cannot be taken from the wild and only falcons bred in captivity can be traded.
—Will Barker, TheWeek, 8 Jan. 2026
Doing so bred hope for more days like Monday, when an overflow crowd stood inside a stuffy press conference room to witness, perhaps, the beginning of Crane’s vision.
—Chandler Rome, New York Times, 6 Jan. 2026
Sarah Jacob, Bloomberg, 27 Jan. 2026
The family has bred and raised several draft horses through the years, growing the herd to as many as 22 at one point on their 40-acre Mountain View Belgians northwest of Longmont.
—Judith Kohler, Denver Post, 24 Jan. 2026
Covid-19 bred doubt about government edicts and skepticism about science, provoking an existential battle for truth.
—Richard Edelman, Time, 18 Jan. 2026
The foreign minister took the opportunity to question whether the uprising that has lasted more than two weeks is a sincere rejection of the Islamic regime’s ideology or general discontent bred by Iran’s economic isolation.
—Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 15 Jan. 2026
Cohen and his colleagues found that mice bred without beige fat had higher blood pressure than mice with that kind of fat—evidence for a causal relationship.
—Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 15 Jan. 2026
The team also acknowledges the possibility that birds from surrounding wildland populations may have moved into the now-quieter city and bred with urban juncos.
—New Atlas, 11 Jan. 2026
Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, birds cannot be taken from the wild and only falcons bred in captivity can be traded.
—Will Barker, TheWeek, 8 Jan. 2026
Doing so bred hope for more days like Monday, when an overflow crowd stood inside a stuffy press conference room to witness, perhaps, the beginning of Crane’s vision.
—Chandler Rome, New York Times, 6 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bred
Verb
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Using her background in cellular biology, Gueble propagated cell cultures that mirrored cancerous cells lacking MGMT and MMR.—
Isabella Backman,
Hartford Courant,
27 Jan. 2026
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The shape and brightness of the rekindled tail trace the complex interactions that occurred between the AGN’s ejected jet and the ICM as the jet propagated outward.—
K. R. Callaway,
Scientific American,
24 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Republicans, who hold a super-minority in the Legislature and have long raised concerns about taxes and regulations overburdening California businesses, will likely oppose any tax bills.—
Nicole Nixon,
Sacbee.com,
8 Jan. 2026
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Funds raised during the 2025 Grammy Awards telecast, MusiCares’ Persons of the Year event and additional fundraising efforts were used to help deal with housing instability, interrupted income, physical health complications and ongoing trauma.—
David Wilson,
Daily News,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Robert Gleason, lead of parent advisory at the Rady Gender Clinic, noted that San Diego’s only medical center dedicated to serving children and adolescents created the resource only a decade ago and only after many years of advocacy from families.—
Paul Sisson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
25 Jan. 2026
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By combining simple materials with smart engineering, MIT researchers created a tool that could save lives without lingering in the body.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
25 Jan. 2026
Verb
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This was mostly because Sonia was busy with the German shepherd, who slept behind a gate in the kitchen and barked frantically whenever another parent came to the door.—
Nell Freudenberger,
Harpers Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
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Even as overnight temperatures hung in the 20s and 30s, immigrants desperate to make appointments at Charlotte’s Department of Homeland Security office slept outside the building in recent weeks.—
Patricia Ortiz,
Charlotte Observer,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
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According to the National Garden Scheme, the grounds even contain a mulberry tree reputed to have been planted by Queen Elizabeth I herself.—
Bailey Bujnosek,
InStyle,
29 Jan. 2026
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Butt maintains his innocence, claiming his confession was coerced through torture, and that evidence against him was planted, The Daily Telegraph reported.—
Efrat Lachter,
FOXNews.com,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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What Rusbridger’s account leaves out is that the BBC has reproduced the prejudices of successive British establishments since its inception in the early twentieth century, whether by propagandizing against workers during the general strike of 1926 or by condemning the antiwar protests of 2003.—
Sean Williams,
Harpers Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
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No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.—
Lizz Schumer,
PEOPLE,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Living on location throughout the shoot fostered a rare level of trust and intimacy that permeates every frame.—
Ryan Gajewski,
HollywoodReporter,
12 Jan. 2026
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Wenner's love of music was fostered from a young age by his dad Jann Wenner, who co-founded Rolling Stone in 1967.—
Emma Banks,
InStyle,
11 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Starmer has brought a delegation of nearly 60 British business executives and organization leaders on this trip.—
Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
30 Jan. 2026
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Another lawsuit brought by detainees in federal court in Fort Myers argued that immigration was a federal issue, and Florida agencies and private contractors hired by the state had no authority to operate the facility under federal law.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
29 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bred.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bred. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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