bred

See also: бред and бредь

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bɹɛd/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛd
• Homophone: bread

Etymology 1

Verb

bred

1. simple past and past participle of breed [from 1650s]

Derived terms

• courtbred
• crossbred
• earthbred
• half-bred
• hellbred
• highbred
• homebred
• lowbred
• nonbred
• purebred
• sib-bred
• standardbred
• straightbred
• thoroughbred
• true-bred
• unbred
• underbred
• xbred

Etymology 2

From Middle English bred, from Old English bred (“board, plank, tablet, table”). More at braid.

Noun

bred (plural breds)

1. (dialectal) Alternative form of braid (“board, shelf, plank”).

References

• Douglas Harper (2001–2025), “bred (adj.)”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

Anagrams

• EBRD

Bislama

Etymology

From English bread.

Noun

bred

1. bread

Danish

Etymology 1

From Old Danish breth, from Old Norse breiðr, from Proto-Germanic *braidaz. Cognate with Old English brad.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /breːˀð/, [ˈb̥ʁæˀð], [ˈb̥ʁæðˀ]

Adjective

bred (neuter bredt, plural and definite singular attributive brede)

1. broad, wide

Inflection

Inflection of bred

	positive	comparative	superlative
indefinite common singular	bred	bredere	bredest2
indefinite neuter singular	bredt	bredere	bredest2
plural	brede	bredere	bredest2
definite attributive1	brede	bredere	bredeste

¹ When an adjective is applied predicatively to something definite,
the corresponding "indefinite" form is used.
² The "indefinite" superlatives may not be used attributively.

Synonyms

• vid

Antonyms

• smal

References

• “bred,2” in Den Danske Ordbog

Etymology 2

From Old Danish bræd, from Proto-Germanic *brezdaz, cognate with Norwegian bredd, Swedish brädd, Old English breord. Related to *bruzdaz (“thorn”) (Danish brod) and possibly also *burdą (“board”) (Danish bord).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /breð(ˀ)/, [ˈb̥ʁæðˀ], [ˈb̥ʁæð]

Noun

bred c (singular definite bredden, plural indefinite bredder)

1. shore
2. bank

Declension

Declension of bred

common gender	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	bred	bredden	bredder	bredderne
genitive	breds	breddens	bredders	breddernes

References

• “bred,1” in Den Danske Ordbog

Middle English

Etymology 1

From Old English brēad, from Proto-West Germanic *braud, from Proto-Germanic *braudą.

Alternative forms

• bredd, brede, breed, breede, breid, brid
• bread, bræd (Early Middle English)
• bryad, bryead (Kent)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /brɛ̝ːd/

Noun

bred

2. bread, pastry
3. variety of bread
4. food, nourishment
5. livelihood, sustenance

Synonyms

• (bread): payn

Related terms

• bredles
• gyngebred
• holy bred

Descendants

• English: bread (see there for further descendants)
• English: (West Yorkshire) breead
• Geordie: breed
• Scots: breid
• Yola: breed

References

• “brēd, n.(1).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 20 March 2018.

Etymology 2

Verb

bred

1. alternative form of breden (“to breed”)

Norwegian Bokmål

Alternative forms

• brei

Etymology

From Old Norse breiðr.

Adjective

bred (neuter singular bredt, definite singular and plural brede, comparative bredere, indefinite superlative bredest, definite superlative bredeste)

1. wide, broad

Antonyms

• smal

Derived terms

• bredbånd

References

• “bred” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Old English

Alternative forms

• bræd

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *bred, from Proto-Germanic *bredą, derived from the e-grade *bʰredʰóm, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰer-dʰ-, extended form of *bʰer- (“to carve, cut, split, rub”). Cognates include German Brett, Yiddish ברעט (bret).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bred/

Noun

bred n

1. surface
2. plank, board
3. table, tablet

Declension

Strong a-stem:

	singular	plural
nominative	bred	bredu
accusative	bred	bredu
genitive	bredes	breda
dative	brede	bredum

Synonyms

• bord

Derived terms

• briden
• fōtbred
• handbred
• rihtebred
• tæppelbred
• weaxbred

Related terms

• bridd (possibly)

Descendants

• Middle English: bred, bræd, brede (from the oblique cases)
  • English: bred, brade, braid (dialectal)
  • Scots: bred, braid, brad

Old Frisian

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *braid.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbreːd/, [ˈbrɛːd]

Adjective

brēd

1. broad, wide

Descendants

• North Frisian:

  Föhr-Amrum: briad

  Goesharde: briid

  Halligen: briad

  Mooring: briidj

  Sylt: breer

  Wiedingharde: briidj

• Saterland Frisian: breed
• West Frisian: brie

References

• Bremmer, Rolf H. (2009), An Introduction to Old Frisian: History, Grammar, Reader, Glossary, Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company, →ISBN

Old Saxon

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *braid.

Adjective

brēd

1. broad, wide

Declension

Positive forms of brēd

Strong declension
	singular			plural
	masculine	feminine	neuter	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	brēd	brēd	brēd	brēde, brēda	brēda	brēd, brēda
accusative	brēdan, brēden	brēda	brēd	brēda, brēde	brēda	brēd, brēda
genitive	brēdes, brēdas	brēdara, brēdaro	brēdes, brēdas	brēdaro, brēdoro, brēdero	brēdaro, brēdoro, brēdero	brēdaro, brēdoro, brēdero
dative	brēdumu, brēdum, brēdun, brēdun, brēdon, brēden, brēdan	brēdaro, brēdaru, brēdara	brēdumu, brēdum, brēdun, brēdun, brēdon, brēden, brēdan	brēdun, brēdon, brēdum	brēdun, brēdon	brēdun, brēdon, brēdum
Weak declension
	singular			plural
	masculine	feminine	neuter	masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	brēdo, brēda	brēda, brēde	brēda, brēde	brēdon, brēdun	brēdon, brēdun, brēdan	brēdon, brēdun
accusative	brēdon, brēdan	brēdun, brēdon, brēdan	brēda, brēde	brēdon, brēdun	brēdon, brēdun, brēdan	brēdon, brēdun
genitive	brēden, brēdan	brēdun, brēdan, brēden	brēden, brēdan	brēdono, brēdeno	brēdono	brēdono, brēdeno
dative	brēdon, brēden, brēdan	brēdun, brēdan	brēdon, brēden, brēdan	brēdon, brēdun	brēdon, brēdun	brēdon, brēdun

Descendants

• Middle Low German: *brêd
  • German Low German:

    Altmärkisch: breet

    Low Prussian, Westphalian (Bentheimisch, Westmünsterländisch): breed

    Westphalian:

    Dortmundisch: braẹ̆t

    Sauerländisch: bräit, brait (Elpe, Felbecke, Finnentrop, Attendorn, Elspe), brǟt (Niedersfeld)

    East Westphalian: breit (Lippe)

    Eastphalian: breit (Wedemark)

Senhaja de Srair

Etymology

Borrowed from Moroccan Arabic برد (brad), from Arabic بَرَدَ (barada).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /brəd/

Verb

bred (Tifinagh spelling ⴱⵔⴻⴷ)

1. (intransitive) to be or become cold

   Iberd-id lḥal. ― It is cold.

Related terms

• bared (“cold”)

References

• Gutova, Evgeniya; Byler, Jonathan (2025), “Senhaja de Srair - English Dictionary”, in Webonary‎^[1], retrieved 2025
• Gutova, Evgeniya (2021) Senhaja Berber Varieties : phonology, Morphology, and Morphosyntax (Thesis)‎^[2], Paris, France: HAL

Swedish

Etymology

From Old Swedish brēþer, from Old Norse breiðr, from Proto-Germanic *braidaz.

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -eːd

• Audio:

  (file)

Adjective

bred (comparative bredare, superlative bredast)

1. wide, broad (having great width)
2. broad (having great extent)

   bred kunskap

   broad knowledge

Declension

Inflection of bred

Indefinite	positive	comparative	superlative1
common singular	bred	bredare	bredast
neuter singular	brett	bredare	bredast
plural	breda	bredare	bredast
masculine plural2	brede	bredare	bredast
Definite	positive	comparative	superlative
masculine singular3	brede	bredare	bredaste
all	breda	bredare	bredaste

¹ The indefinite superlative forms are only used in the predicative.
² Dated or archaic.
³ Only used, optionally, to refer to things whose natural gender is masculine.

Derived terms

• bredbent
• bredvid
• gå den breda vägen

Related terms

• bredd (“width”)
• bredda (“to widen”)

See also

• smal
• vid

Verb

bred

1. imperative of breda

References

• bred in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• bred in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• bred in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)