breeding ground
Americannoun
-
a place where animals breed or to which they return to breed.
-
an environment suitable for or fostering the development of an idea, thing, etc..
a breeding ground for violence.
Etymology
Origin of breeding ground
First recorded in 1930–35
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.
Social media is the new breeding ground for the kind of toxicity that the people mining Panettiere’s death for views purport to abhor.
From Salon ● Aug. 18, 2026
But when humans began living in villages and towns on the outskirts of those forests, some mosquitoes found the water stored in containers in human settlements a more attractive breeding ground.
From Slate ● Aug. 4, 2026
The best way to prevent infection is to make sure your home is not a breeding ground for virus-carrying mosquitoes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026
Every year during the breeding season, the volunteers work to help toads cross the busy A525 from their land habitat to their ancestral breeding ground at the reservoir.
From BBC ● Apr. 19, 2026
The overpopulation created a breeding ground for illness.
From "A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919" by Claire Hartfield
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
