Meaning & use
breech
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Meanings
nouncountabletechnical
The back end of a gun barrel, where the bullet or shell is put in and fired.
Grammar: Often used before another noun: breech block, breech loader.
Patterns
- the breech of something
The soldier opened the breech and slid a shell into the cannon.
Old rifles that load at the breech were a big improvement over muzzle-loaders.
He cleaned the breech of the gun after every use.
nouncountablemedical
The position of a baby in the womb with the feet or bottom pointing down, so that it would be born that way round instead of head first.
Grammar: Most often used as a modifier: a breech baby, a breech birth.
Patterns
- in breech
The scan showed the baby was in breech, so the doctors planned for a careful delivery.
She was nervous because her first child had been a breech birth.
The midwife tried to turn the breech baby before labor began.
Word forms
| plural | breeches |
|---|
Common combinations
- breech birth
- A breech birth often needs extra medical attention.
- breech baby
- The doctor explained how a breech baby can be turned.
- breech-loading
- The museum displays a breech-loading rifle from the 1860s.
- breech block
- The breech block locks the cartridge in place when the gun fires.
- breech presentation
- A breech presentation is found in a small share of late pregnancies.
Synonyms and how they differ
- rear
- Rear is a general word for the back of anything, but breech is specific to the firing end of a gun or a baby's position.
Opposites
Word family
- breeches noun
- knee-length trousers, traditionally worn for riding or in historical costume (pronounced like britches)
- breechblock noun
- the part of a gun that closes the breech
- breech-loader noun
- a gun that is loaded through the rear of the barrel
- breeching noun
- a strap around a horse's hindquarters, or the rear part of a gun
Commonly confused: breech or breach?
breech vs breach
Breach is a different word that sounds the same: it means a break or gap, or the breaking of a rule or promise, as in a breach of contract.
Practice
The midwife noticed the baby was positioned feet-first, a condition known as a ___ birth.
Choose one answer.
Breech is the correct spelling for the feet-first position. Breach sounds the same but means a break or violation, and brooch and beach are unrelated words.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “breech”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.