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half-breed

American  
[haf-breed, hahf-] / ˈhæfˌbrid, ˈhɑf- /

noun

  1. a contemptuous term used to refer to the offspring of parents of different racial origin, especially the offspring of an American Indian and a white person of European descent.


adjective

  1. of or relating to such offspring.

half-breed British  

noun

  1. offensive a person whose parents are of different races, esp the offspring of a White person and an American Indian

"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

adjective

  1. of, relating to, or designating offspring of people or animals of different races or breeds

"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

Etymology

Origin of half-breed

An Americanism dating back to 1750–60

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.

Is it a carrot's little offspring, or some kind of mutant half-breed?

From Slate • May 17, 2012

In addition to replacing the N-word, Gribben changes the villain in "Tom Sawyer" from "Injun Joe" to "Indian Joe" and "half-breed" becomes "half-blood."

From Seattle Times • Jan. 5, 2011

Lon Chaney is an old tiger-trapper whose half-breed daughter, Lupe Velez, is in love with a nice young American in a crash suit.

From Time Magazine Archive

Among the other rising dog stars of 1987 are Grendel, the yuppie puppy on ABC's family drama thirtysomething, and Bo, the German shepherd-husky half-breed of Summer School.

From Time Magazine Archive

He was afraid that Thornton would pass out of his life as Perrault and François and the Scotch half-breed had passed out.

From "The Call of the Wild" by Jack London

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