/bree"ding/ , n.
1. the producing of offspring.
2. the improvement or development of breeds of livestock, as by selective mating and hybridization.
3. Hort. the production of new forms by selection, crossing, and hybridizing.
4. training; nurture: He is a man of good breeding.
5. the result of upbringing or training as shown in behavior and manners; manners, esp. good manners: You can tell when a person has breeding.
6. Energy. the production in a nuclear reactor of more fissile material than is consumed.
[ 1250-1300; ME; see BREED, -ING 1 ]