brooder
UK[ˈbruːdə(r)]US[ˈbruːdər]
n
a heated enclosure for raising young poultry or other animals.
n
a person who broods, or thinks deeply and persistently about something, often in a troubled way.
Morpheme Breakdown
brood
er
brood
offspring, hatchling, that which is bred.
er
Etymology
the word 'brooder' is built upon the old english noun brōd, which referred to a brood of young birds or the act of incubation. this root is related to the verb 'to breed,' tracing back to the proto-germanic brōdiz. the addition of the agent suffix '-er' creates a noun that literally means "one who broods." its primary modern sense, a device for hatching eggs or rearing chicks, directly extends this literal meaning. the secondary, figurative sense describing a person who dwells persistently on thoughts, much like a hen sits on her eggs, emerged from the metaphorical use of the verb 'brood' in the late 16th century.
Analysis
Structure: brood + er
brood: from old english brōd, meaning "offspring, hatchling, that which is bred." functional role: root, carrying the core meaning of breeding or hatching.
er: from old english -ere, an agent noun suffix. functional role: suffix, indicating "a person or thing that does the action of the verb."
Examples
the farmer checked the temperature in the brooder where the new chicks were kept.
after the argument, he became a quiet brooder, lost in his own thoughts for hours.
we use an infrared lamp as a brooder for the orphaned ducklings.