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• bread and butter
  bread and butter

  noun

  bread spread with butter.
• bread-and-butter
  bread-and-butter

  adjective

  providing a livelihood or basic source of income; supplying the basic needs of life.

bread and butter

¹ American  

noun

1. bread spread with butter.

2. a basic means of support; source of livelihood; sustenance.

   The automobile industry is the bread and butter of many Detroiters.

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bread-and-butter ² American  

[bred-n-buht-er] / ˈbrɛd nˈbʌt ər /

adjective

1. providing a livelihood or basic source of income; supplying the basic needs of life.

   a bread-and-butter job; the agency's bread-and-butter account.

2. of or relating to basic needs.

   housing and other bread-and-butter political issues.

3. basic or everyday; staple; routine.

4. expressing thanks for hospitality.

   a bread-and-butter letter.

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bread and butter British  

noun

1. (modifier) a means of support or subsistence; livelihood

   the inheritance was their bread and butter

2. 1. providing a basic means of subsistence

      a bread-and-butter job

   2. solid, reliable, or practical

      a bread-and-butter player

   3. expressing gratitude, as for hospitality (esp in the phrase bread-and-butter letter )

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bread and butter Idioms  

1. The essential, sustaining element, as in The quality of the schools is the bread and butter of town property values . This idiom alludes to a basic food, bread spread with butter. [c. 1700]

2. Means of livelihood, as in John's job is the family's bread and butter . [First half of 1700s]

3. Ordinary, routine, as in Don't worry about it; this is just a bread and butter assignment . [Second half of 1800s]

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Etymology

Origin of bread and butter¹

First recorded in 1620–30

Origin of bread-and-butter²

First recorded in 1720–30; adj. use of noun phrase bread and butter

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bread and butter bread-and-butter

In case you’re unfamiliar with Ritchson, he’s a muscles-on-muscles behemoth whose bread and butter happens to be skull-drubbing action films.

From Salon ● Aug. 22, 2026

The brand’s traditional bread and butter is performance running.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026

While Coinbase has diversified its business over the last five years, crypto trading remains its bread and butter, which is a problem when prices are low.

From Barron's ● Jun. 5, 2026

Granted, the Emmys have made repetitiveness its bread and butter for decades now.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 26, 2026

My bread and butter comes from this town, and Maycomb’s given me a good living.

From "Go Set a Watchman: A Novel" by Harper Lee

Banks stand to earn less on some bread-and-butter activities, such as making longer-term loans to customers, relative to the interest they pay out to clients on short-term deposits.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 22, 2026

The company’s bread-and-butter gaming business remained a steady source of revenue in the second quarter, with domestic games revenue rising 17% thanks to deferred gross receipts from the previous quarter.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026

“Show you care. Sit at the local hot dog joint or diner, talk to people about bread-and-butter issues they care about. Talk about inflation, talk about health care, talk about clean drinking water.”

From Salon ● Feb. 19, 2026

Streaming favors videos of any length from a few seconds to many hours, which is YouTube’s bread-and-butter.

From Barron's ● Feb. 18, 2026

Plates of thin bread-and-butter and wholemeal scones were provided for the ladies in galoshes, and the gentlemen in top-hats had lamb cutlets and custard in glasses.

From "Mary Poppins" by P. L. Travers