Crossbreds

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A hybrid variety of plants or animals produced by breeding two distinct breeds or species together
2. Describing organisms that have been genetically combined from parental lines to create a mixture of traits
3. Referring to the offspring resulting from the cross-pollination or mating of different breeds that possess unique characteristics from each parent

Etymology: "Crossbreds" is the plural of "crossbred," an adjective and noun formed from "cross" plus "bred," the past participle of "breed." The compound is transparent: "cross" in the sense of mixing two different kinds, and "bred" meaning raised from a particular parentage. Its component parts are very old, with "cross" tracing back through Old English "cros" and Old Norse "kross" to Latin "crux," and "breed" descending from Old English roots. The sense of "cross" as a verb meaning to interbreed two different kinds of plants or animals is what gives the word its meaning. The noun "crossbreed" and the adjective "crossbred" developed from that agricultural usage, so the term describes offspring whose parents came from distinct lines. Because the word is a plain compound, its interest lies mainly in how familiar pieces combine to name a practice that farmers and breeders have long relied on.

Synonyms: hybrids, mixed breeds, crosses

Antonyms: purebreds, homogeneous types