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bread and butter

SEE SYNONYMS FOR bread and butter

noun

bread spread with butter.
a basic means of support; source of livelihood; sustenance: The automobile industry is the bread and butter of many Detroiters.

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Origin of bread and butter

First recorded in 1620–30

Words nearby bread and butter

breach of faith, breach of promise, breach of the peace, breach of trust, bread, bread and butter, bread-and-butter letter, bread-and-butter model, bread-and-butter pickle, bread and circuses, bread and honey

Definition for bread and butter (2 of 2)

bread-and-butter
[ bred-n-buht-er ]
/ ˈbrɛd nˈbʌt ər /

adjective

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.
of or relating to basic needs: housing and other bread-and-butter political issues.
basic or everyday; staple; routine.
expressing thanks for hospitality: a bread-and-butter letter.

Origin of bread-and-butter

First recorded in 1720–30; adj. use of noun phrase bread and butter
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to bread and butter

bread, keep, livelihood, living, means, meat, staff of life, support, sustenance

Example sentences from the Web for bread and butter

British Dictionary definitions for bread and butter

bread and butter
/ informal /

noun

(modifier) a means of support or subsistence; livelihoodthe inheritance was their bread and butter
bread-and-butter
  1. providing a basic means of subsistencea bread-and-butter job
  2. solid, reliable, or practicala bread-and-butter player
  3. expressing gratitude, as for hospitality (esp in the phrase bread-and-butter letter)
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

Idioms and Phrases with bread and butter

bread and butter
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]

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.