breastfeed

verb

breast·​feed ˈbrest-ˌfēd 

variants or breast-feed

breastfed or breast-fed; breastfeeding or breast-feeding; breastfeeds or breast-feeds

transitive verb

: to feed (a baby) from a mother's breast

intransitive verb

1

: to breastfeed a baby

… more women are breastfeeding than ever before …

—Lauren Sandler

2

of a baby : to feed oneself by sucking milk from a mother's breast

breastfed adjective

or breast-fed

breastfed babies

breastfeeder noun

or breast-feeder

breastfeeding noun

or breast-feeding

Synonyms

• nurse
• suckle
• wet-nurse

Examples of breastfeed in a Sentence

believes that all women should breast-feed their babies

Recent Examples on the Web

Not that breastfeeding is easy, as Jing discovers to her frustration. —Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 31 Oct. 2024

Mercury content is also something to be wary of, especially for pregnant or breastfeeding women, as high levels of mercury can be harmful to developing nervous systems. —Daryl Austin, USA TODAY, 8 Oct. 2024

One reason: New Haitian immigrants must wait six to eight weeks to get into a program that provides supplemental food for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, or non-breastfeeding postpartum women, as well as for children and infants. —Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 18 Oct. 2024

In fact, breastfeeding moms need an additional 16 cups of fluids daily. —Lauryn Higgins, Parents, 10 Oct. 2024

This may be of concern in pregnancy, breastfeeding, children, and people with kidney issues. —Melissa Nieves, Verywell Health, 9 Oct. 2024

Of all the taboos Wong breaks, from getting into the gory truth of breastfeeding to working blue while visibly pregnant, the unabashed embrace of her own success may be the most challenging of all to social norms. —Variety, NBC News, 9 Oct. 2024

Many women report that their breasts appear different after childbirth, even after breastfeeding has stopped. —Katia Hetter, CNN, 8 Oct. 2024

Cardi, 31, shared the little girl’s birth date along with a series of hospital photos, including one of herself breastfeeding and others showing her family doting on the newborn. —Nardine Saad, Los Angeles Times, 12 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1869, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Kids Definition

breast-feed

verb

ˈbrest-ˌfēd

breast-fed

-ˌfed

; breast-feeding

: to feed a baby from a mother's breast

Medical Definition

breastfeed

verb

breast·​feed

variants or breast-feed

ˈbrest-ˌfēd

breastfed or breast-fed; breastfeeding or breast-feeding; breastfeeds or breast-feeds

transitive verb

: to feed (a baby) from a mother's breast

intransitive verb

1

: to breastfeed a baby

2

of a baby : to feed oneself by sucking milk from a mother's breast

breastfed adjective

or breast-fed

breastfed babies

breastfeeder noun

or breast-feeder

This class for first-time breastfeeders will be from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m.

—The Reno (Nevada) Gazette-Journal

On average, infants who were exclusive breast-feeders continued to drink more as they got older …

—The Philadelphia Inquirer

breastfeeding noun

or breast-feeding