breeder n : a person who breeds animals [syn: stock breeder]

English

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -iːdə(r)

Noun

1. A person who breeds plants or animals professionally.
2. (gay slang; derogatory) A heterosexual; i.e. one whose sexual intercourse can lead to breeding.
3. A type of nuclear reactor that creates material suitable for the production of atomic weapons. (See Wikipedia's article on fast breeder reactors.)
4. In the context of "slang|derogatory": a person who has had or who is capable of having children; a person who is focussed on the rearing of their own children.

   Quotations:

   • 1729:"The number of souls in this kingdom being usually reckoned one million and a half, of these I calculate there may be about two hundred thousand couple whose wives are breeders; from which number I subtract thirty thousand couples who are able to maintain their own children, although I apprehend there cannot be so many, under the present distresses of the kingdom; but this being granted, there will remain an hundred and seventy thousand breeders." — Jonathan Swift A Modest Proposal

   Usage note: This meaning is generally either an ironic usage (as in the Swift quotation) or an intentionally offensive usage (by implying that parenthood is the same as animal husbandry).

Derived terms

• stockbreeder

Related terms

• breed
• breeder reactor
• brood
• brooding

Translations

• Czech: chovatel , šlechtitel
• Finnish: kasvattaja (1)
• Japanese: 育雛器 (いくすうき) (1, only animals)
• Vietnamese: người chăn nuôi (1)
• German: Züchter (1); Brüter, Brutreaktor (3)
• Portuguese: criador (1); reprodutor (4)

A breeder is a person who practices the vocation of mating carefully selected specimens of the same breed to reproduce specific, consistently replicable qualities and characteristics.

This might be as a farmer, agriculturalist, or hobbyist, and can be practiced on a large or small scale, for food, fun, or profit.

See also:

• Animal husbandry
• Animal fancy
• Breeding
• Cat breeding
• Dog breeding
• Horse breeding
• Pigeon keeping
• Plant or crop breeding
• Selective breeding

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