breeding
/ˈbɹiːdɪŋ/noun, adjective, verb
breeding is spelled B-R-E-E-D-I-N-G: 8 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 12 times per million words in written English, the 6,230th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, breeding means “Propagation of offspring through sexual reproduction” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of breeding is breedings.
How many letters and syllables are in breeding?
| Letters | 8: B-R-E-E-D-I-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 12 times per million words; the 6,230th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is breeding?
Breeding appears 12 times per million words in written English, the 6,230th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce breeding?
- /ˈbɹiːdɪŋ/
Breeding has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-breeding.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with breeding?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as breeding.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: bigender.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of breeding
- breedings plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does breeding mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Propagation of offspring through sexual reproduction.
- 2
The act of insemination by natural or artificial means.
- 3
The act of copulation in animals.
- 4
The good manners regarded as characteristic of the aristocracy and conferred by heredity.
- 5
Nurture; education; formation of manners.
- 6
Descent; pedigree; extraction.
Your dog has good breeding.
- 7
Ejaculation inside the rectum during bareback anal sex.
adjective
- 1
Of, relating to or used for breeding.
Your toothbrush is a breeding ground for bacteria.
verb
- 1
present participle and gerund of breed
Through genetic manipulation and harsh training, I am breeding a species of super-dogs to take over the world.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Breeding in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | élevage , insémination , copulation |
| Spanish | cópula , preñada |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does breeding come from?
From Middle English breedyng, bredynge (“gestation, incubation, propagation, hatching; engineering, formation, development, growth”), equivalent to breed + -ing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).