breeding
Americannoun
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the producing of offspring.
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the improvement or development of breeds of livestock, as by selective mating and hybridization.
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Horticulture. the production of new forms by selection, crossing, and hybridizing.
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training; nurture.
He is a man of good breeding.
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the result of upbringing or training as shown in behavior and manners; manners, especially good manners.
You can tell when a person has breeding.
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Energy. the production in a nuclear reactor of more fissile material than is consumed.
noun
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the process of bearing offspring; reproduction
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the process of producing plants or animals by sexual reproduction
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the result of good training, esp the knowledge of correct social behaviour; refinement
a man of breeding
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a person's line of descent
his breeding was suspect
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physics a process occurring in a nuclear reactor as a result of which more fissionable material is produced than is used up
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of breeding
Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; see origin at breed, -ing 1
Vocabulary lists containing breeding
Growth, Development and Reproduction of Organisms - Middle School
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Growth, Development and Reproduction of Organisms - High School
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The Killer Angels
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Donal Beagan, Nest Protection and Headstarting Manager at Breeding Waders EIP project, said finding this bird with the nest and eggs is "really exciting".
From BBC • May 31, 2026
Breeding season runs from mid- to late winter, and wolves are fertile only once a year — right around Valentine’s Day.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 6, 2026
"We are currently transferring the horses at this stud farm to other stud farms in Ukraine," director of the state-owned enterprise "Horse Breeding of Ukraine" Vitaliy Brovko told AFP.
From Barron's • Dec. 19, 2025
Breeding Bald Eagles in Arizona are generally believed to stay close to their nesting territories for much of the year, but there has been much less information about what nonbreeding birds do.
From Science Daily • Dec. 11, 2025
“Got this outta the library — Dragon Breeding fir Pleasure and Profit — it’s a bit outta date, o’ course, but it’s all in here.
From "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" by J.K. Rowling
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
