Meaning & use
breaststroke
Last updated
Meaning
noununcountable
A swimming style in which you lie face down, pull both arms out and back together, and kick your legs like a frog.
Grammar: Usually uncountable; use it with 'the' when talking about the style in general.
Patterns
- swim (the) breaststroke
- do (the) breaststroke
- a breaststroke swimmer
She swims breaststroke because it is easier on her knees.
In the race, he did the first 50 meters in breaststroke.
The coach says my breaststroke kick needs to be stronger.
Common combinations
- swim the breaststroke
- He learned to swim the breaststroke when he was six.
- breaststroke kick
- Her breaststroke kick is powerful and quick.
- 100-meter breaststroke
- The 100-meter breaststroke is his best event.
- do the breaststroke
- For warm-up, we do the breaststroke for ten minutes.
Synonyms and how they differ
- breaststroke
- No exact synonym; this is the standard term for the style.
Commonly confused: breaststroke or backstroke? breaststroke or butterfly?
breaststroke vs backstroke
Backstroke is swum on your back, while breaststroke is swum face down.
breaststroke vs butterfly
Butterfly uses both arms at once but a dolphin kick, not a frog kick.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'breaststroke' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'He did the breaststroke in the pool' is correct because breaststroke is a swimming style. 'On her back' is wrong because breaststroke is face down; the other options confuse it with other activities.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “breaststroke”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.