bream

1 of 2

noun

ˈbrim How to pronounce bream (audio) ˈbrēm How to pronounce bream (audio)
plural bream or breams
1
: a bronze-colored European freshwater cyprinid fish (Abramis brama)
broadly : any of various related fishes
2
a
: any of various marine fish (family Sparidae) related to the porgy

called also sea bream

b
: any of various freshwater sunfishes (Lepomis and related genera)
especially : bluegill

bream

2 of 2

verb

ˈbrēm How to pronounce bream (audio)
breamed; breaming; breams

transitive verb

: to clean (a ship's bottom) by heating and scraping

Examples of bream in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
Of note for more adventurous appetites are the oxtail and blue cheese pizza or Zambian whole bream fish. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Oct. 2026 Carlton Wing wore a coat of live mayflies Thursday while fly fishing for bream on Midway Lake. — Bryan Hendricks, Arkansas Online, 6 Sep. 2026 People snare smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, walleye, crappie, bream and lake trout there. — Joe Marusak, Charlotte Observer, 8 Aug. 2026 The study also looked at how these rays fit into the broader food web by comparing them to a common estuarine fish, the yellowfin bream (Acanthopagrus australis). — Melissa Cristina Márquez, Forbes.com, 6 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for bream

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English breme, from Anglo-French, of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German brahsima bream, Middle High German brehen to shine

Verb

probably from Dutch brem furze; from the use of burning furze in the cleaning

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1626, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of bream was in the 14th century

Phrases Containing bream

Rhymes for bream

See All Rhymes for bream

Browse Nearby Words

break (with) precedent
bream
breard
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Bream.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bream. Accessed 14 Oct. 2026.

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Kids Definition

bream

noun
ˈbrim, 
ˈbrēm
plural bream or breams
1
: any of various freshwater fishes
especially : any of several sunfishes (as a bluegill)
2
: any of several saltwater fishes related to the porgy

More from Merriam-Webster on bream

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about bream

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