breast
/brest/ (bre, ipa) · /brest/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈbrest/ (ame, mw)
breast — noun
1. a soft part on the front of an adult woman's chest that can feed a baby with mil
a soft part on the front of an adult woman's chest that can feed a baby with milk.
The doctor found a small lump in Priya's left breast.
left/right breast
After the birth, milk began to come from one breast first.
breast milk
Leila covered her breast while the nurse changed the bandage.
The scan showed no change in the sore breast tissue.
文法句型
left/right breast
breast tissue
breast milk
用法筆記
Often used in medical, health, and feeding contexts. Distinguish this sense from noun/5, which means the chest area in general rather than a woman's milk-producing body part.
常見錯誤
2. the front chest area of a bird or other animal.
the front chest area of a bird or other animal.
The robin had a bright red breast in the winter sun.
red breast
A strip of white feathers ran across the duck's breast.
breast feathers
After the fall, the vet checked the puppy's breast for swelling.
The harness rubbed the horse's breast during the long climb.
- back
the opposite side of the animal's body
文法句型
bird's breast
red/white breast
breast feathers
用法筆記
Mostly used for birds and animals in description. Distinguish it from noun/3, which names the meat after the animal has been cut for food.
常見錯誤
3. a piece of meat taken from an animal's front chest, especially from birds such a
a piece of meat taken from an animal's front chest, especially from birds such as chicken or turkey.
Dad grilled two chicken breasts for the salad.
chicken breast
The menu offers duck breast with orange sauce tonight.
duck breast
Mei sliced the turkey breast into thin pieces.
The cook stuffed the breast with herbs before roasting.
- white meat
broader food term that includes breast meat but is not exactly the same cut
- fillet
names a boneless cut, not only this body area
- thigh
a different meat cut from the upper leg
文法句型
chicken breast
duck breast
turkey breast
用法筆記
Common in recipes, menus, and food shopping. The word often follows the animal name, especially chicken, duck, or turkey, and it does not describe the living creature in this sense.
常見錯誤
4. the chest-covering part on a shirt, dress, coat, or similar piece of clothing.
the chest-covering part on a shirt, dress, coat, or similar piece of clothing.
Gold thread decorated the breast of the guard's coat.
breast of a coat
A dark stain spread across the breast of her blouse.
breast of a blouse
The tailor pinned lace onto the breast of the wedding dress.
Rain darkened the breast of Yusuf's wool jacket.
- front
general word for the front part of clothing
- chest panel
more technical and used mainly in sewing or design
- back
the opposite side of the clothing item
文法句型
breast of a coat
breast of a blouse
breast of a dress
用法筆記
Mostly found in older description of clothes or sewing. Distinguish it from noun/5, where the word refers to the person's body rather than the cloth covering it.
常見錯誤
5. the upper front area of a person's body below the neck; chest.
the upper front area of a person's body below the neck; chest.
Sven folded his hands across his breast at the funeral.
across the breast
A bronze medal hung on the breast of the old soldier.
on the breast of
Cold rain beat against the climber's breast all morning.
The child pressed the letter to her breast.
- back
the body area on the opposite side
文法句型
against the breast
across the breast
to the breast
用法筆記
Now mostly literary or formal, and often used in set phrases such as 'against his breast' or 'to her breast'. In ordinary talk, 'chest' is much more usual.
常見錯誤
6. the imagined place inside a person where strong feelings seem to live.
the imagined place inside a person where strong feelings seem to live.
Relief filled Hana's breast when the missing boy returned.
fill the breast
Jealousy rose in Omar's breast during the award speech.
emotion in the breast
At the good news, joy leaped in my breast.
Fear beat in the guard's breast as the gate opened.
文法句型
emotion + in the breast
fill the breast
within the breast
用法筆記
This sense is literary and usually appears with nouns for emotion plus 'in', 'within', or verbs such as fill, rise, and beat. Distinguish it from noun/5, which refers to the physical chest.
常見錯誤
breast — verb
1. to move straight into something difficult or dangerous and meet it without backi
to move straight into something difficult or dangerous and meet it without backing away.
The rescue boat breasted the heavy waves before sunrise.
breast + waves/wind/storm
Firefighters breasted the smoke and entered the shop together.
breast + smoke
The old bus breasted the strong mountain wind at noon.
Aiko breasted the angry crowd and reached her brother.
文法句型
breast + waves/wind/storm
breast + crowd/smoke
breast + danger
用法筆記
Literary and transitive. The object is usually a force or barrier such as waves, wind, smoke, or a crowd, not an ordinary place or destination.
常見錯誤
2. to get to the top of a hill, wave, or other rising surface after moving upward.
to get to the top of a hill, wave, or other rising surface after moving upward.
The cyclists breasted the hill just before the church.
breast + hill/ridge/slope
Our horses breasted the ridge and saw the lake below.
breast + ridge
The jeep breasted the sandy rise near the border post.
At noon, the runners breasted the final slope together.
- descend
move downward
文法句型
breast + hill/ridge/slope
breast + rise
breast + wave
用法筆記
Also literary and transitive. The object is usually a hill, ridge, slope, wave, or similar raised surface, and the verb focuses on arrival at the top rather than the climb itself.
常見錯誤
3. to push your chest against something, often to hold it steady or force it open.
to push your chest against something, often to hold it steady or force it open.
Theo breasted the door while the movers carried the sofa.
breast + door/gate
The guard breasted the gate shut against the wind.
breast + gate
Rohan breasted the box to keep it upright in the truck.
The player breasted the sled into place before the race began.
- release
stop holding or pushing the object
文法句型
breast + door/gate
breast + box/sled
breast + object + into place
用法筆記
Rare and strongly physical. The object is a solid thing such as a door, gate, box, or sled, and the action is done with the chest rather than with the hands alone.