feed

A2 Topic:Food & Drink

Also spelled feedin

US /ˈfiːd/ See IPA manual

Freq #1548

Meanings

1

verb
To give food to a person or animal.

Remember to feed the dog every evening.
2

verb
To eat, usually said of animals.

Spiders feed on insects like gnats and flies.
3

verb
To put or supply material into a machine so it can work.

Feed the paper gently into the shredder.
4

verb
To grow stronger by using something, often in a harmful way.

Cruel rumours feed on people's fears.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to give food to a person or... nourish

3 verb · to put or supply material... feed in

4 verb · to grow stronger by using... prey

Word family

Forms fedfeedingfeedsoverfeedingunderfeedingunfed

Derived forms aquafeedbacon-fedbirdfeedboobfeedbottle-fedbottle-feedbreast-fedbreastfeedco-feedcofeedcornfedcounterfeed

Etymology

From Middle English feden, from Old English fēdan (“to feed”), from Proto-West Germanic *fōdijan, from Proto-Germanic *fōdijaną (“to feed”), from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂- (“to guard, graze, feed”). Cognate with West Frisian fiede (“to nourish, feed”), Dutch voeden (“to feed”), Danish føde (“to bring forth, feed”), Swedish föda (“to bring forth, feed”), Icelandic fæða (“to feed”), and more distantly with Latin pāscō (“feed, nourish”, verb) through Indo-European. More at food, fodder.

*peh₂- Proto-Indo-European feden Middle English fēdan Old English *fōdijan Proto-West Germanic *fōdijaną Proto-Germanic

View etymology graph ->

External links

# feed

**Type:** Word
**Level:** A2
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /ˈfiːd/
**Frequency rank:** 1548

## Meanings
1. To give food to a person or animal.
2. To eat, usually said of animals.
3. To put or supply material into a machine so it can work.
4. To grow stronger by using something, often in a harmful way.

## Examples
- Remember to feed the dog every evening.
- Spiders feed on insects like gnats and flies.
- Feed the paper gently into the shredder.
- Cruel rumours feed on people's fears.

## Derived Forms
- aquafeed
- bacon-fed
- birdfeed
- boobfeed
- bottle-fed
- bottle-feed
- breast-fed
- breastfeed
- co-feed
- cofeed
- cornfed
- counterfeed

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *peh₂-
- Root: feden
- Root: fēdan
- Root: *fōdijan
- Root: *fōdijaną

## Etymology
From Middle English feden, from Old English fēdan (“to feed”), from Proto-West Germanic *fōdijan, from Proto-Germanic *fōdijaną (“to feed”), from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂- (“to guard, graze, feed”). Cognate with West Frisian fiede (“to nourish, feed”), Dutch voeden (“to feed”), Danish føde (“to bring forth, feed”), Swedish föda (“to bring forth, feed”), Icelandic fæða (“to feed”), and more distantly with Latin pāscō (“feed, nourish”, verb) through Indo-European. More at food, fodder.

## AI Etymology
Feed comes from Middle English feden, from Old English fēdan (“to feed”), from Proto-West Germanic *fōdijan, from Proto-Germanic *fōdijaną (“to feed”), from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂- (“to guard, graze, feed”). Cognate with West Frisian fiede (“to nourish, feed”), Dutch voeden (“to feed”), Danish føde (“to bring forth, feed”), Swedish föda (“to bring forth, feed”), Icelandic fæða (“to feed”), and more distantly with Latin pāscō (“feed, nourish”, verb) through Indo-European. More at food, fodder. In current use, the main senses are “To give food to a person or animal” and “To eat, usually said of animals”.

## Topics
- Food & Drink
- Actions & Processes

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