breeding

American  

[bree-ding] / ˈbri dɪŋ /

noun

1. the producing of offspring.

2. the improvement or development of breeds of livestock, as by selective mating and hybridization.

3. Horticulture. the production of new forms by selection, crossing, and hybridizing.

4. training; nurture.

   He is a man of good breeding.

5. the result of upbringing or training as shown in behavior and manners; manners, especially good manners.

   You can tell when a person has breeding.

6. Energy. the production in a nuclear reactor of more fissile material than is consumed.

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breeding British  

/ ˈbriːdɪŋ /

noun

1. the process of bearing offspring; reproduction

2. the process of producing plants or animals by sexual reproduction

3. the result of good training, esp the knowledge of correct social behaviour; refinement

   a man of breeding

4. a person's line of descent

   his breeding was suspect

5. physics a process occurring in a nuclear reactor as a result of which more fissionable material is produced than is used up

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Other Word Forms

• nonbreeding adjective

Etymology

Origin of breeding

Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; breed, -ing ¹

Example Sentences

They mate for life and only lay one egg every two years which they raise on breeding islands.

From BBC

Sufficient gain, a durable first wall and effective tritium breeding are the essential technical advances on the path to practical fusion energy.

From The Wall Street Journal

"What we want hunts to do is to stop breeding them and to work with reputable rescues to rehome the dogs in their kennels."

From BBC

The farm has also recorded significant increases in moths and breeding birds.

From BBC

From the 1950s, demand for turkeys exploded when mass production breeding techniques were adopted, says Mrs Graham.

From BBC

Related Words

• development
• rearing
• training