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.
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Nearby words
bread knife, bread line, bread mold, bread mould, bread sauce, bread-and-butter, bread-and-butter letter, bread-and-butter model, bread-and-butter pickle, bread-basket, breadbasket
Origin of bread-and-butter
First recorded in 1720–30; adj. use of noun phrase bread and butter
Definition for bread-and-butter (2 of 2)
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.
Origin of bread and butter
First recorded in 1620–30
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples 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
- providing a basic means of subsistencea bread-and-butter job
- solid, reliable, or practicala bread-and-butter player
- 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
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]
Means of livelihood, as in John's job is the family's bread and butter. [First half of 1700s]
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.