Definition

1. Noun:

   • A freshwater fish: A bream is any of various usually edible freshwater fishes with compressed bodies and shiny scales. They are often of the sunfish family (Centrarchidae), especially the genus Lepomis.
   • A marine fish: A bream is also any of numerous marine fishes, especially of the porgy family (Sparidae).
   • The flesh of these fish: Bream refers to the edible flesh of various saltwater fishes of the families Sparidae or Bramidae, or of freshwater fishes from North America or Europe.

2. Verb:

   • To clean a ship's hull: To bream means to clean a ship's bottom, historically by using heat (to burn off seaweed and barnacles) and then scraping it.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:

  • We caught several large bream from the lake.
  • The Mediterranean diet often includes grilled sea bream.
  • For dinner, we had bream with a lemon sauce.

• Verb:

  • In the old days, sailors would have to bream the ship's hull to keep it seaworthy.

Advanced Usage

• "To bream a ship": This is a technical, historical nautical term for the process of cleaning a vessel's underwater hull.
  • The vessel was hauled ashore to be breamed and repaired.

Variants and Related Words

• Breaming (n): The act or process of cleaning a ship's bottom.
  • The breaming of the hull was a difficult and smoky task.

Synonyms

• Freshwater bream: sunfish, bluegill (specific types).
• Marine bream: porgy, sea bream.
• Verb (clean): scour, scrape, clean off.

Related Phrases (Phrasal Verbs)

(This word does not commonly form phrasal verbs.)

Related Idioms

(There are no common idioms specifically featuring the word 'bream'.)

Noun

1. any of various usually edible freshwater percoid fishes having compressed bodies and shiny scales; especially (but not exclusively) of the genus Lepomis
2. any of numerous marine percoid fishes especially (but not exclusively) of the family Sparidae
3. flesh of any of various saltwater fishes of the family Sparidae or the family Bramidae
4. flesh of various freshwater fishes of North America or of Europe

Verb

1. clean (a ship's bottom) with heat