Chinese word

繁殖

Pronunciation

Pinyinfán zhí

Meaning

  • verbbreed

Example

春天到了，田里的虾开始繁殖。chūn tiān dào le tián lǐ de xiā kāi shǐ fán zhí

Spring has arrived, and the shrimp in the fields have begun to breed.

Illustration for 繁殖 (breed)

More examples

湖水富营养化后，藻类在夏季会大量繁殖。hú shuǐ fù yíng yǎng huà hòu zǎo lèi zài xià jì huì dà liàng fán zhí

After the lake becomes eutrophic, algae will breed in large numbers in summer.

Core concept

Existing members generate more of the same kind, so a group grows in size or extends its reach.

Common phrases

  • 大量繁殖dà liàng fán zhí

    breed in large numbers

  • 在体内繁殖zài tǐ nèi fán zhí

    breed inside the body

  • 人工繁殖rén gōng fán zhí

    breed artificially

Similar words

生殖shēng zhí: To produce offspring through biological reproduction, whether sexual or asexual.
养殖yǎng zhí: To raise fish, livestock, or other organisms under human care so their numbers increase.
生育shēng yù: To grow and develop into a larger, mature organism.

Definition in Chinese

通过有性或无性方式使种群增多，也可指某种事物在数量或范围上迅速扩展。tōng guò yǒu xìng huò wú xìng fāng shì shǐ zhǒng qún zēng duō yě kě zhǐ móu zhǒng shì wù zài shù liàng huò fàn wéi shàng xùn sù kuò zhǎn

Word origin

繁殖 (fánzhí, "to breed") is formed from 繁 (fán, "flourishing") and 殖 (zhí, "to multiply"), linking flourishing with the process that makes a population grow.

Usage tips

  • The word is broader than everyday English uses of breed because it can describe reproduction without mating and the rapid spread of a thing or phenomenon.

Other meanings

  • breedingnoun

Opposites

Related words

  • 繁殖力fán zhí lìreproductive capacitynoun
  • 繁殖期fán zhí qībreeding seasonnoun

Word lists with this word