breadbasket

American

[bred-bas-kit, -bah-skit] / ˈbrɛdˌbæs kɪt, -ˌbɑ skɪt /

noun

a basket or similar container for bread or rolls.
an agricultural area that provides large amounts of food, especially grain, to other areas.
Slang. a person's stomach or abdomen.

adjective

of, relating to, or characteristic of a geographical breadbasket.

Iowa is a breadbasket state.

breadbasket British

/ ˈbrɛdˌbɑːskɪt /

noun

a basket for carrying bread or rolls
a slang word for stomach

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of breadbasket

First recorded in 1545–55; bread + basket

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:

breadbasket

The governor of Russia’s breadbasket Rostov region declared a state of emergency in late August, citing the disruption to local agriculture.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 7, 2026

The Santa Cruz region is an agricultural breadbasket for Bolivia, supplying food to the country's western areas.

From Barron's ● Jun. 6, 2026

“We are the breadbasket of the world but we’ve been overlooked for too long,” said Andrea Shabaglian, a vice president of the Fresno Republican women’s group.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 23, 2026