breadcrumb
breadcrumb Lexical Profile
breadcrumb Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A tiny fragment or particle of bread that has broken off or been finely ground, often used in cooking for coating fried foods or topping baked dishes.
"The chef coated the chicken cutlets in seasoned breadcrumbs before frying them until golden brown."
A small, incremental piece of information or clue that helps someone trace a path or uncover a larger truth.
"The investigative journalist followed a trail of financial breadcrumbs to uncover the corporate fraud."
In computing, a graphical navigation element (typically used in the plural) that displays the user's current hierarchical location within a website, file system, or application.
"Adding breadcrumbs to the top of the product pages helped shoppers navigate back to main categories easily."
• verb
To coat or cover (food) with finely ground crumbs of bread before frying or baking.
"You should breadcrumb the fish fillets just before placing them into the hot skillet."
To give (someone) sporadic, noncommittal signals of romantic or interpersonal interest in order to keep them engaged without intending to pursue a genuine relationship (informal).
"She realized he was only breadcrumbing her with occasional late-night messages rather{ than asking her out on a real date."
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Formed as a compound of Old English 'bread' and 'cruma' (small fragment). Its figurative senses in computing and modern relationship slang allude to the German folk tale 'Hansel and Gretel,' in which the children drop trail markers of bread to find their way back through the forest.