inbreeding

American  

[in-bree-ding] / ˈɪnˌbri dɪŋ /

noun

Biology.

1. the mating of closely related individuals, as cousins, sire-daughter, brother-sister, or self-fertilized plants, which tends to increase the number of individuals that are homozygous for a trait and therefore increases the appearance of recessive traits.

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inbreeding Scientific  

/ ĭn′brē′dĭng /

1. The breeding or mating of related individuals within an isolated or closed group of organisms or people. Inbreeding can result in inbreeding depression. However, in agriculture and animal husbandry, the continued breeding of closely related individuals can help to preserve desirable traits in a stock.

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Etymology

Origin of inbreeding

First recorded in 1835–45; inbreed + -ing ¹

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

inbreeding

Vantara collects genetic data to help prevent inbreeding among Asiatic lions, is building a university, and pledges to fund overseas conservation projects.

From Barron's ● Oct. 30, 2026

The idea behind the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing is to provide a lifeline for mountain lions in the Santa Monica Mountains, locked in by traffic and suffering from the effects of inbreeding.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026

This hidden genetic diversity may help explain how a population founded by only a handful of snakes survived intense inbreeding, adapted to Guam, and expanded so dramatically.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 26, 2026

Despite numbering only about 2,000 individuals, the Bristol Bay belugas showed high levels of genetic diversity and relatively little evidence of inbreeding.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 4, 2026

In 2005, members of the Native American Havasupai Tribe sued Arizona State University after scientists took tissue samples the tribe donated for diabetes research and used them without consent to study schizophrenia and inbreeding.

From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot

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