interbreed
Americanverb (used with object)
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interbreeds,
present (3rd person singular)
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interbred,
past participle, past
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interbreeding
present participle
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to crossbreed (a plant or animal).
-
to cause to breed together.
verb (used without object)
-
interbreeds,
present (3rd person singular)
-
interbred,
past participle, past
-
interbreeding
present participle
-
to crossbreed.
-
to breed or mate with a closely related individual, as in a small, closed population.
verb
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(intr) to breed within a single family or strain so as to produce particular characteristics in the offspring
-
another term for crossbreed
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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interbreedsimple
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interbreedssimple
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have interbredperfect
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has interbredperfect
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am interbreedingprogressive
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are interbreedingprogressive
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is interbreedingprogressive
-
have been interbreedingperfect progressive
-
has been interbreedingperfect progressive
Past
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interbredsimple
-
had interbredperfect
-
was interbreedingprogressive
-
were interbreedingprogressive
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had been interbreedingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of interbreed
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.
See Examples For:
When two closely related groups interbreed, the sex chromosomes do not behave like the others.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 7, 2026
Barred owls and spotted owls are similar in appearance and the birds can even interbreed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 11, 2025
Even if breeding succeeds, it can lead to infertile offspring, such as mules, or to the two species gradually merging into one as they interbreed over generations.
From Science Magazine ● Apr. 17, 2024
These two broods may actually overlap — but probably not interbreed — in a small area near central Illinois, entomologists said.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 1, 2024
There are ten breeds of dragon, though these have been known to interbreed on occasion, producing rare hybrids.
From "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" by J.K. Rowling
Some naturalists would separate them from the other cats, but the connection is supplied by the last species which, though possessing certain features of the lynx, yet interbreeds with the true cats.
From Natural History of the Mammalia of India and Ceylon by Robert Armitage Sterndale
Gavæus frontalis interbreeds freely with domesticated cattle of all kinds.
From Natural History of the Mammalia of India and Ceylon by Robert Armitage Sterndale
It interbreeds in Siberia with C. caniceps, an East Siberian form.
From The History of the European Fauna by Robert Francis Scharff
This hominin descended from a lineage dating back about 1.8 million years and appears to have interbred with Denisovans in Eurasia, probably more than 200,000 years ago.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 1, 2026
In 2010 scientists reconstructed the Neanderthal genome -- blockbuster research that allowed for analysis making clear that the species interbred.
From Barron's ● Feb. 26, 2026
Those first modern humans that had interbred with Neanderthals and lived alongside them died out completely in Europe 40,000 years ago - but not before their offspring had spread further out into the world.
From BBC ● Dec. 12, 2024
This means Thorin's genome was full of the variants one usually sees with recent inbreeding, a striking feature given other modern humans lived nearby with whom Thorin's Neanderthal community could have interbred.
From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2024
Moreover, the black fowls obtained in this way will, when interbred, produce only black offspring and the same is true of the white fowls.
From Being Well-Born An Introduction to Eugenics by Michael F. Guyer
"Because the two species were capable of producing offspring together, their interactions were likely complex, involving competition, occasional interbreeding and other subtle population dynamics."
From Science Daily ● Apr. 28, 2026
The researchers also detected significant interbreeding among the frogs.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 9, 2026
But over hundreds of millennia, human migrations resulted in interbreeding, researchers say.
From Barron's ● Feb. 26, 2026
As well as showing up interbreeding with different populations, embedded in the ancient DNA are hugely important details on how people coped with key historical moments, such epidemics, shifts in diet, urbanisation, and industrialisation.
From BBC ● Jan. 1, 2025
Geographic isolation might have solved some of the “grey finch” problem—by restricting interbreeding between particular variants.
From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee
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