breast

[ brest ]

/ brɛst /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: breast / breasts on Thesaurus.com

noun

Anatomy, Zoology. (in bipeds) the outer, front part of the thorax, or the front part of the body from the neck to the abdomen; chest.

Zoology. the corresponding part in quadrupeds.

either of the pair of mammae occurring on the chest in humans and having a discrete areola around the nipple, especially the mammae of the female after puberty, which are enlarged and softened by hormonally influenced mammary-gland development and fat deposition and which secrete milk after the birth of a child: the breasts of males normally remain rudimentary.

the part of a garment that covers the chest.

the bosom conceived of as the center of emotion: What anger lay in his breast when he made that speech?

a projection from a wall, as part of a chimney.

any surface or part resembling or likened to the human breast.

Mining. the face or heading at which the work is going on.

Metallurgy.

the front of an open-hearth furnace.
the clay surrounding the taphole of a cupola.

Nautical.

breast line.
a rounded bow.

verb (used with object)

to meet or oppose boldly; confront: As a controversial public figure he has breasted much hostile criticism.

to contend with or advance against: The ship breasted the turbulent seas.

to climb or climb over (a mountain, obstacle, etc.).

to overcome, succeed against.

to come alongside or abreast of.

Verb Phrases

breast in, Nautical. to bind (an object, as a boatswain's chair) securely under a projection, as the flare of a bow.

breast off, Nautical.

to thrust (a vessel) sideways from a wharf.
to keep (a vessel) away from a wharf by means of timbers.

QUIZ

GOOSES. GEESES. I WANT THIS QUIZ ON PLURAL NOUNS!

Test how much you really know about regular and irregular plural nouns with this quiz.

Question 1 of 9

Which of the following nouns has an irregular plural form?

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Idioms about breast

beat one's breast, to display one's grief, remorse, etc., in a loud and demonstrative manner.

make a clean breast of, to confess everything (of which one is guilty): You'll feel better if you make a clean breast of it.

Origin of breast

before 1000; Middle English brest,Old English brēost; cognate with Old Norse brjōst; akin to German Brust,Gothic brusts,Dutch borst

OTHER WORDS FROM breast

breastless, adjective

Words nearby breast

breakwater, breakweather, break wind, break with, bream, breast, breast beam, breast-beating, breastbone, breast drill, breasted

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use breast in a sentence

Things most meat eaters like to ignore for the ease and inoffensiveness of picking up a pound of plastic-wrapped chicken breasts on the way home from work.
Instagram's Most Fascinating Subculture? Women Hunters.|Rachel Levin|September 8, 2020|Outside Online
I soon met more than a dozen women who said that male mechanics would grope them, leer at their breasts and make sexual comments or physical insinuations about sex.
Temp Workers Fight Back Against Alleged Sexual Harassment and Say They Face Retaliation for Doing So|by Melissa Sanchez|August 28, 2020|ProPublica
Three more women have died from a cancer associated with certain kinds of breast implants—all within a six-month period starting just weeks before those implants were recalled.
Three more women have died from cancer linked to Allergan’s recalled breast implants, FDA says|Maria Aspan|August 24, 2020|Fortune
The team got similar results with several different Brd4 inhibitors and in mice with breast, colon or lung tumors.
These cells slow an immune response. Derailing them could help fight tumors|Esther Landhuis|July 10, 2020|Science News

Men with this condition can opt for breast reduction surgery or wear a compression vest.
Science of ‘Seinfeld’|LGBTQ-Editor|June 15, 2020|No Straight News
He tore a piece of meat off the breast and stroked her coat while she ate.
The Stacks: A Chicken Dinner That Mends Your Heart|Pete Dexter|December 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
My girlfriend, Barbara, came to visit me and exposed her breast through the window.
The Unbelievable (True) Story of the World’s Most Infamous Hash Smuggler|Marlow Stern|November 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Hooters is cleverly asking me to “Give a Hoot” about breast cancer.
The Misogynistic Companies Jumping On The Breast Cancer Bandwagon|Emily Shire|October 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It also sells a number of products that contain chemicals that have been linked to breast cancer.
The Misogynistic Companies Jumping On The Breast Cancer Bandwagon|Emily Shire|October 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Sure, Hooters may have a vested financial interests in breasts—or rather, a very specific type of breast.
The Misogynistic Companies Jumping On The Breast Cancer Bandwagon|Emily Shire|October 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
"Here's my authority, yuh blasted runt," he yelled, and jerked his six-shooter to a level with the policeman's breast.
Raw Gold|Bertrand W. Sinclair
It is something which takes side in the child's breast with the reasonable governor and the laws which he or she administers.
Children's Ways|James Sully
Alessandro walked at the horses' heads, his face sunk on his breast, his eyes fixed on the ground.
Ramona|Helen Hunt Jackson
We laid him down gently, folded his arms on his breast, and for a moment held our peace in tribute to his passing.
Raw Gold|Bertrand W. Sinclair
The governor placed a dagger to his breast in order to get him to tell what he knew of his wife.
The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898, Volume XX, 1621-1624|Various

British Dictionary definitions for breast

breast

/ (brɛst) /

noun

the front part of the body from the neck to the abdomen; chest

either of the two soft fleshy milk-secreting glands on the chest in sexually mature human femalesadjective mammary

a similar organ in certain other mammals

anything that resembles a breast in shape or positionthe breast of the hill

a source of nourishmentthe city took the victims to its breast

the source of human emotions

the part of a garment that covers the breast

a projection from the side of a wall, esp that formed by a chimney

mining the face being worked at the end of a tunnel

beat one's breast to display guilt and remorse publicly or ostentatiously

make a clean breast of to make a confession of

verb (tr)

to confront boldly; facebreast the storm

to oppose with the breast or meet at breast levelbreasting the waves

to come alongside ofbreast the ship

to reach the summit ofbreasting the mountain top

Word Origin for breast

Old English brēost; related to Old Norse brjōst, Old High German brust, Dutch borst, Swedish bräss, Old Irish brū belly, body

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

Medical definitions for breast

breast

[ brĕst ]

Either of two milk-secreting, glandular organs on the chest of a woman; mammary gland; mamma.

A corresponding rudimentary gland in the male.

The superior ventral surface of the human body, extending from the neck to the abdomen.

Other Idioms and Phrases with breast

breast

see keep abreast of; make a clean breast of.

breast

Idioms about breast

Origin of breast

OTHER WORDS FROM breast

Words nearby breast

Words related to breast

How to use breast in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for breast

Word Origin for breast

Medical definitions for breast

Other Idioms and Phrases with breast