to breast
1
8.3
- verb
- /brɛst/
- Archaic
- He quickened his pace, breasting hard into the drifts, fighting the snow away with his knees and elbows.
Examples
-
Bernardo was highly insulted, saying something about not being stuck twice by a large-toothed, chicken-breasted Englishwoman who wanted only to keep him on a leash.
Fiction book (1991) -
He wore pointy-toed shoes, liked pointy-breasted women and dark-skinned young men, and he drove a Cadillac Seville.
Fiction book (2001) -
All were breasted except Lee, but none of them had babies.
Fiction book (1994) -
I was the typical farm boy, complete with ankle-high brogans, drawl, and a double-breasted suit in a single-breasted era.
Fiction book (1991) -
He called the red-breasted robin a "ruddock"; the sweetly singing thrush a "gladsome mavis."
Fiction book (1992) -
As the climber reached the final steps, she finally managed to breast the summit and take in the breathtaking view.
-
The athlete struggled but managed to breast the steep hill during the final lap of the race.
-
With one last push, they breasted the crest of the mountain, exhilarated by the achievement.
Synonyms
50
1.5
To reach the highest point or part of something
6
6.2
To reach the top of a mountain
1
6.8
To reach the top of a hill or mountain after climbing it
Antonyms
Idioms
Compounds
- Specialized
33
3.8
A device that doctors put inside a breast to rebuild or enlarge it
1
4.1
A cut of lamb with the breastbone and meat around it, often roasted or used in stews
- Specialized
1
3.3
A non-cancerous breast condition with small fluid lumps and firm areas that can be painful
- Specialized
1
4.2
A breast condition with small fluid-filled lumps and firm tissue that is not cancer and may cause pain
- Specialized
A hand tool with a rotating metal bit and a flat plate you press against the chest to make holes
How High
Surface Forms
Etymology
The verb breast for reaching a top comes from the image of the chest moving over a ridge, so to breast a hill is to reach the summit or go over the top.