|
- pronunciation:
- brid
- parts of speech:
- transitive verb, intransitive verb, noun
- features:
- Word Combinations (verb, noun), Word Explorer
part of speech: |
transitive verb |
inflections: |
breeds, breeding, bred |
definition 1: |
to produce (offspring); give birth to.
The healthy animals will soon breed offspring.- synonyms:
- bear, beget, engender, generate, mother, procreate, produce, propagate, spawn
- similar words:
- father, reproduce, sire
|
definition 2: |
to cause or encourage to reproduce.
Her family breeds racehorses.- synonyms:
- mate, propagate
- similar words:
- cultivate, develop, generate, grow, proliferate, promote, raise
|
definition 3: |
in genetics, to fertilize or pollinate under controlled conditions in order to develop or improve a strain.
These organisms will be bred in the laboratory.- similar words:
- clone, crossbreed, fertilize, graft, hybridize, interbreed, pollinate, propagate
|
definition 4: |
to beget or engender; cause.
Oppression breeds revolution.Violence breeds revenge.- synonyms:
- beget, cause, engender, generate, spawn
- similar words:
- foster, nurture, occasion, produce
|
definition 5: |
to bring up or educate; rear.
These children were bred to take their place in a structured and privileged society.- synonyms:
- foster, nurture, raise, rear
- similar words:
- mother
|
related words: |
bear, beget, conceive, litter, procreate, yield |
|
|
|
part of speech: |
intransitive verb |
definition 1: |
to produce offspring.
It is hoped that the newly introduced polar bears will breed in the zoo.- synonyms:
- multiply, procreate, propagate, reproduce, spawn
- similar words:
- bear, copulate, couple, increase, litter, mate, proliferate
|
definition 2: |
to be produced.
Fear breeds in violent neighborhoods.- similar words:
- arise, develop, emerge, grow
|
related words: |
conceive, propagate, spawn |
|
|
|
part of speech: |
noun |
definition 1: |
a group of animals within one species, having relatively unvaried physical characteristics, developed under controlled conditions by man.
The poodle is a breed of dog originally raised as a retriever of game birds from water.
- synonyms:
- race
- similar words:
- family, kind, sort, species, strain, type, variety
|
definition 2: |
a type, kind, or variety.
He represents a new breed of environmental activist.- synonyms:
- kind, manner, sort, type, variety
- similar words:
- description, form, species
|
|
derivation: |
breedable (adj.) |
|
|