inbreeding

[in-bree-ding]

See more synonyms for inbreeding on Thesaurus.com

noun Biology.

the mating of closely related individuals, as cousins, sire-daughter, brother-sister, or self-fertilized plants, which tends to increase the number of individuals that are homozygous for a trait and therefore increases the appearance of recessive traits.

Origin of inbreeding

First recorded in 1835–45; inbreed + -ing¹

inbreed

[in-breed, in-breed]

verb (used with object), in·bred, in·breed·ing.

to breed (individuals of a closely related group) repeatedly.
to breed within; engender.

verb (used without object), in·bred, in·breed·ing.

to engage in or undergo inbreeding.

Origin of inbreed

First recorded in 1590–1600; in-¹ + breed

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for inbreeding

Contemporary Examples

The family also believed that inbreeding was central to both preserving the family fortune and ensuring “purity of blood.”
Foxcatcher’s Real-Life Psycho Killer
Marlow Stern
November 18, 2014
Their excuse for the killing the giraffe was that they were worried about inbreeding.
At the Copenhagen Zoo, Humans Can Be Animals
Kevin Bleyer
March 28, 2014
Break out the banjos and inbreeding jokes, folks, the Appalachian lounge suit is back.
Enough with the Overalls!
Sean Macaulay
April 7, 2010

Historical Examples

Inbreeding, caponizing, etc., What to do at different seasons.
Apple Growing
M. C. Burritt
It is very probable, but not absolutely certain, that inbreeding is harmful.
Folkways
William Graham Sumner
The notion of harm in inbreeding has spread all over the earth.
Folkways
William Graham Sumner
Inbreeding maintains the excellence of a breed at the expense of its vigor.
Folkways
William Graham Sumner
Inbreeding intensifies and fixes the qualities, be they good or bad.
Hints on Dairying
T. D. Curtis

British Dictionary definitions for inbreeding

inbreed

verb -breeds, -breeding or -bred

to breed from unions between closely related individuals, esp over several generations
(tr) to develop within; engender

Derived Formsinbreeding, noun, adjective

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