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Bread vs. Breed: What's the Difference?

Edited by Aimie Carlson || By Janet White || Updated on October 11, 2023
Bread is a staple food made from dough, while breed refers to a particular type or lineage of animals or plants or the act of producing offspring.

Key Differences

Bread and breed are two entirely different words in English, each with its own distinct meaning. Bread is primarily understood as a type of food, usually made from wheat, and is a staple in many diets around the world. It can be baked, fried, or steamed and comes in various forms like loaves, buns, or rolls. Breed, on the other hand, is most commonly associated with types or categories of animals, especially in the context of lineage or pedigree.
Additionally, while bread is confined to the realm of nourishment and culinary delights, breed has a broader application. To breed is also a verb, meaning to produce offspring by mating. For example, farmers might breed animals to produce certain desirable traits. Bread doesn't have this verb form.
Moreover, bread can be used metaphorically in language, signifying basic necessities or means of sustenance as in "breadwinner" or "breaking bread." Breed does not share this metaphorical connection to sustenance but can denote characteristics or behaviors thought to be typical of particular groups or types.
It's essential to recognize the grammatical differences as well. While bread is a noun, breed can function both as a noun and a verb. So, while one might have a slice of bread, one might also breed dogs or discuss the breed of a particular animal.

Comparison Chart

Grammar Type

Noun
Noun & Verb
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Primary Meaning

Food made from dough
Type or lineage of animals or plants

Secondary Meaning

Source of sustenance (metaphorical)
To produce offspring

Contextual Example

Bread as in sandwiches
Breeding animals for specific traits

Related Words

Loaf, bun, roll
Species, lineage, reproduce

Bread and Breed Definitions

Bread

A piece of food made from dough.
She ordered a bread basket for the table.
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Breed

A stock of animals or plants within a species.
The Siamese is a popular cat breed.

Bread

The food that one needs in order to live.
Bread and water are basic necessities.

Breed

To develop a particular characteristic.
Neglect can breed resentment.

Bread

A food made from flour, water, and yeast or another leavening agent.
I baked some fresh bread this morning.

Breed

A lineage or strain with shared characteristics.
This dog is of a rare breed.

Bread

A source of sustenance or livelihood.
He is the breadwinner of the family.

Breed

To give rise to; lead to.
Such conditions breed disease.

Bread

Money (informal usage).
He made a lot of bread with that investment.

Breed

To produce (offspring); give birth to or hatch.

Bread

A staple food made from flour or meal mixed with other dry and liquid ingredients, usually combined with a leavening agent, and kneaded, shaped into loaves, and baked.

Breed

To bring about; engender
"Admission of guilt tends to breed public sympathy" (Jonathan Alter).

Bread

Food in general, regarded as necessary for sustaining life
"If bread is the first necessity of life, recreation is a close second" (Edward Bellamy).

Breed

To cause to reproduce, especially by controlled mating and selection
Breed cattle.

Bread

Something that nourishes; sustenance
"My bread shall be the anguish of my mind" (Edmund Spenser).

Breed

To develop new or improved strains in (organisms), chiefly through controlled mating and selection of offspring for desirable traits.

Bread

Means of support; livelihood
Earn one's bread.

Breed

To inseminate or impregnate; mate with.

Bread

(Slang) Money.

Breed

To rear or train; bring up
A writer who was bred in a seafaring culture.

Bread

To coat with bread crumbs, as before cooking
Breaded the fish fillets.

Breed

To be the place of origin of
Austria breeds great skiers.

Bread

(uncountable)

Breed

To produce (fissionable material) in a breeder reactor.

Bread

A foodstuff made by baking dough made from cereals.
We made sandwiches with the bread we bought from the bakery.
Any leftover bread can be put into the pudding.

Breed

To produce offspring.

Bread

Food; sustenance; support of life, in general.

Breed

To copulate; mate.

Bread

(countable) Any variety of bread.

Breed

To originate and develop
Mischief breeds in bored minds.

Bread

Money.

Breed

A group of organisms having common ancestors and certain distinguishable characteristics, especially a group within a species developed by artificial selection and maintained by controlled propagation.

Bread

Breadth.

Breed

A kind; a sort
A new breed of politician.
A new breed of computer.

Bread

A piece of embroidery; a braid.

Breed

(Offensive) A person of mixed racial descent; a half-breed.

Bread

(transitive) To coat with breadcrumbs.
Breaded fish

Breed

To produce offspring sexually; to bear young.

Bread

To make broad; spread.

Breed

(transitive) To give birth to; to be the native place of.
A pond breeds fish; a northern country breeds stout men

Bread

(transitive) To form in meshes; net.

Breed

Of animals, to mate.

Bread

To spread.

Breed

To keep animals and have them reproduce in a way that improves the next generation’s qualities.

Bread

To cover with bread crumbs, preparatory to cooking; as, breaded cutlets.

Breed

To arrange the mating of specific animals.
She wanted to breed her cow to the neighbor's registered bull.

Bread

An article of food made from flour or meal by moistening, kneading, and baking.

Breed

To propagate or grow plants trying to give them certain qualities.
He tries to breed blue roses.

Bread

Food; sustenance; support of life, in general.
Give us this day our daily bread.

Breed

To take care of in infancy and through childhood; to bring up.

Bread

Food made from dough of flour or meal and usually raised with yeast or baking powder and then baked

Breed

To yield or result in.
Disaster breeds famine;
Familiarity breeds contempt

Bread

Informal terms for money

Breed

To be formed in the parent or dam; to be generated, or to grow, like young before birth.

Bread

Cover with bread crumbs;
Bread the pork chops before frying them

Breed

(sometimes as breed up) To educate; to instruct; to bring up

Breed

To produce or obtain by any natural process.

Breed

(intransitive) To have birth; to be produced, developed or multiplied.

Breed

(transitive) to ejaculate inside someone's anus

Breed

All animals or plants of the same species or subspecies.
A breed of tulip
A breed of animal

Breed

A race or lineage; offspring or issue.

Breed

(informal) A group of people with shared characteristics.
People who were taught classical Greek and Latin at school are a dying breed.

Breed

To produce as offspring; to bring forth; to bear; to procreate; to generate; to beget; to hatch.
Yet every mother breeds not sons alike.
If the sun breed maggots in a dead dog.

Breed

To take care of in infancy, and through the age of youth; to bring up; to nurse and foster.
To bring thee forth with pain, with care to breed.
Born and bred on the verge of the wilderness.

Breed

To educate; to instruct; to form by education; to train; - sometimes followed by up.
But no care was taken to breed him a Protestant.
His farm may not remove his children too far from him, or the trade he breeds them up in.

Breed

To engender; to cause; to occasion; to originate; to produce; as, to breed a storm; to breed disease.
Lest the placeAnd my quaint habits breed astonishment.

Breed

To give birth to; to be the native place of; as, a pond breeds fish; a northern country breeds stout men.

Breed

To raise, as any kind of stock.

Breed

To produce or obtain by any natural process.
Children would breed their teeth with less danger.

Breed

To bear and nourish young; to reproduce or multiply itself; to be pregnant.
That they breed abundantly in the earth.
The mother had never bred before.
Ant. Is your gold and silver ewes and rams?Shy. I can not tell. I make it breed as fast.

Breed

To be formed in the parent or dam; to be generated, or to grow, as young before birth.

Breed

To have birth; to be produced or multiplied.
Heavens rain graceOn that which breeds between them.

Breed

To raise a breed; to get progeny.
The kind of animal which you wish to breed from.

Breed

A race or variety of men or other animals (or of plants), perpetuating its special or distinctive characteristics by inheritance.
Twice fifteen thousand hearts of England's breed.
Greyhounds of the best breed.

Breed

Class; sort; kind; - of men, things, or qualities.
Are these the breed of wits so wondered at?
This courtesy is not of the right breed.

Breed

A number produced at once; a brood.

Breed

A special lineage;
A breed of Americans

Breed

A special variety of domesticated animals within a species;
He experimented on a particular breed of white rats
He created a new strain of sheep

Breed

Half-caste offspring of parents of different races (especially of white and Indian parents)

Breed

A lineage or race of people

Breed

Call forth

Breed

Copulate with a female, used especially of horses;
The horse covers the mare

Breed

Of plants or animals;
She breeds dogs

Breed

Have young (animals);
Pandas rarely breed in captivity

Breed

To reproduce or cause to reproduce.
They breed horses on their farm.

FAQs

What does "breaking bread" mean?

It's a phrase that often means sharing a meal or coming together in peace and fellowship.

Can breed refer to plants as well?

Yes, breed can refer to specific types or strains of plants.

What's the difference between species and breed?

Species is a broader classification of living organisms, while breed is a specific subgroup within a species.

Does breeding always refer to animals?

No, breeding can refer to both animals and plants.

Can conditions or environments breed certain outcomes?

Yes, metaphorically, conditions can "breed" or lead to specific results or behaviors.

What does "rare breed" mean?

It refers to something uncommon or unique, often used metaphorically.

Are bread and pastry the same?

No, while both are baked goods, pastry is often sweeter and has different ingredients.

Is bread always eaten as is?

No, bread can be toasted, buttered, used in sandwiches, or served with dips.

Are all breeds the result of intentional breeding?

No, some breeds develop naturally over time.

Can bread be considered a universal food?

While many cultures have some form of bread, the ingredients and preparation methods vary.

Can bread also mean money?

Informally, yes. In slang, "bread" can refer to money.

Is bread always made from wheat?

No, bread can be made from various grains like rye, barley, and corn.

Can breeding be a professional occupation?

Yes, there are professional breeders who specialize in producing specific breeds of animals.

Can bread be made without yeast?

Yes, there are unleavened breads that don't require yeast.

Can the word breed be used as both a noun and a verb?

Yes, you can refer to a type of animal as a breed (noun) or the act of reproduction as breeding (verb).

What does "purebred" mean?

It refers to an animal whose parents are of the same breed.

Is flatbread truly flat?

Generally, yes. Flatbread is typically thinner and doesn't rise as much as other bread.

Is sourdough a type of bread?

Yes, sourdough is bread made by the fermentation of dough using wild yeast.

Is bread gluten-free?

Regular bread contains gluten, but there are gluten-free varieties available.

Why do people breed animals?

Reasons include producing specific traits, for competitions, preserving a breed, or economic reasons.
About Author
Written by
Janet White
Janet White has been an esteemed writer and blogger for Difference Wiki. Holding a Master's degree in Science and Medical Journalism from the prestigious Boston University, she has consistently demonstrated her expertise and passion for her field. When she's not immersed in her work, Janet relishes her time exercising, delving into a good book, and cherishing moments with friends and family.
Edited by
Aimie Carlson
Aimie Carlson, holding a master's degree in English literature, is a fervent English language enthusiast. She lends her writing talents to Difference Wiki, a prominent website that specializes in comparisons, offering readers insightful analyses that both captivate and inform.

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