brood
noun/bruːd/
/bruːd/
[countable + singular or plural verb]- all the young birds or creatures that a mother produces at one time synonym clutch
- The brood has/have now left the nest.
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- (humorous) a large family of children
- She grew up amidst a lively brood of brothers and sisters.
Word OriginOld English brōd, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch broed and German Brut, also to breed. Sense (1) of the verb was originally used with an object, i.e. ‘to nurse (feelings) in the mind’ (late 16th cent.), a figurative use of the idea of a hen nursing chicks under her wings.
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