brood
brood / broōd/ • n. a family of young animals, esp. of a bird, produced at one hatching or birth: a brood of chicks. ∎ bee or wasp larvae. ∎ inf. all of the children in a family: she was brought up by a loving stepfather as part of a brood of eight. ∎ a group of things or people having a similar character: a remarkable brood of writers.• v. 1. [intr.] think deeply about something that makes one unhappy: he brooded over his need to find a wife.2. [tr.] (of a bird) sit on (eggs) to hatch them. ∎ (of a fish, frog, or invertebrate) hold (developing eggs) within the body.3. [usu. foll. by over] (of silence, a storm, etc.) hang or hover closely: a winter storm broods over the lake.• adj. (of an animal) kept to be used for breeding: a brood mare.
