breed

a number of persons or things that are grouped together because they have something in common some people say that honest politicians are a rare breed Synonyms of breed sort, class, description, feather, genre, ilk, kidney, kind, like, manner, nature, order, species, strain, stripe, type, varietyWords Related to breed model; sample, specimen; bracket, bunch, category, division, family, grade, group, grouping, lot, persuasion, rank(s), set, suite

1 to bring forth offspring rabbits will breed very frequently unless they're kept separated Synonyms of breed procreate, multiply, propagate, reproduceWords Related to breed bear, beget, engender, gender, generate, get, have, mother, parent, produce, sire; hatch, spawn

2 to bring to maturity through care and education he was bred to a life in the military by his father, himself an army captain Synonyms of breed bring up, foster, nourish, nurse, raise, rearWords Related to breed father, mother; attend, care (for), cradle, cultivate, mind, minister (to), nurture, watch; discipline, educate, instruct, mentor, school, teach, train, tutor; edify, enlighten, indoctrinate; feed, provide (for), supply; advance, forward, further, promote; prepare; direct, guide, lead, shepherd, showNear Antonyms of breed abuse, ill-treat, ill-use, maltreat, mishandle, mistreat; ignore, neglect; harm, hurt, injure

3 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 of breed beget, effect, bring, bring about, bring on, catalyze, cause, create, do, draw on, effectuate, engender, generate, induce, invoke, make, occasion, produce, prompt, result (in), spawn, translate (into), work, yieldWords Related to breed conduce (to), contribute (to); decide, determine; begin, establish, father, found, inaugurate, initiate, innovate, institute, introduce, launch, pioneer, set, set up, start; advance, cultivate, develop, encourage, forward, foster, further, nourish, nurture, promote; enact, render, turn outNear Antonyms of breed impede, limit, restrict; clamp down (on), crack down (on), crush, dampen, put down, quash, quell, repress, smother, squash, squelch, stifle, subdue, suppress; arrest, check, control, curb, inhibit, rein (in), restrain, retard; can [slang], kill, snuff (out), still; abolish, demolish, destroy, extinguish, liquidate, quench

4 to engage in sexual intercourse cats breeding outside our window made a horrible racket last night Synonyms of breed copulate, mate, sleepWords Related to breed fool around, fornicate

5 to set permanently in the consciousness or mind-set parents who breed in their children a deep respect for people of all classes Synonyms of breed implant, enroot, inculcate, infix, inseminate, instill, plant, sowWords Related to breed drive, hammer, pound; embed (also imbed), entrench (also intrench), fix, lodge, root; imbue, infuse, ingrain (also engrain), inoculate, invest, steep, suffuse