breadwinner

noun

bread·​win·​ner ˈbred-ˌwi-nər 

plural breadwinners

1

: a member of a family whose wages supply the family's principal or only means of support

the main/primary/sole breadwinner in the family

… many more households have two breadwinners, making it unlikely that there will be someone home all afternoon to cook.

—Mark Bittman

2

: a means (such as a tool, craft, or activity) of livelihood : a way of earning income

Crop diversity kept the overall value of Montana agriculture strong even as wheat, the state agriculture's breadwinner, faltered.

—Tom Lutey

Catfish farming has become the breadwinner industry for many families in west Alabama …

—Robert Dewitt and Benita D. Newton

breadwinning

ˈbred-ˌwi-niŋ 

noun

Examples of breadwinner in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Cost of living has outpaced income, however, so the idea of having a sole breadwinner is outdated in many places, McCoy said. —Madeline Holcombe, CNN Money, 6 Sep. 2025

Kendra had been the breadwinner of the family, working at Central Michigan University in human resources (Shawn worked at an auto-body shop). —Stephanie McNeal, Glamour, 5 Sep. 2025

Maybe masculinity still does mean taking care of and protecting your partner, being the breadwinner and remaining stoic all the same. —Laura Trujillo, USA Today, 4 Sep. 2025

At the beginning of the story, dad is the breadwinner and things seem mostly ok. —Rachel Elspeth Gross, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1614, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for breadwinner

• beginner
• dinner
• inner
• pinner
• sinner
• spinner
• thinner
• tinner
• winner

Kids Definition

breadwinner

noun

bread·​win·​ner ˈbred-ˌwin-ər 

: a person whose wages provide support for his or her family