fertile

American  

[fur-tl, -tahyl] / ˈfɜr tl, -taɪl /

adjective

1. bearing, producing, or capable of producing vegetation, crops, etc., abundantly; prolific.

   fertile soil.

   Synonyms:

   teeming, fecund

   Antonyms:

   barren, sterile

2. bearing or capable of bearing offspring.

   Synonyms:

   teeming, fecund

   Antonyms:

   barren, sterile

3. abundantly productive.

   a fertile imagination.

   Synonyms:

   teeming, fecund

   Antonyms:

   barren, sterile

4. producing an abundance (usually followed by of orin ).

   a land fertile of wheat.

5. conducive to productiveness.

   fertile showers.

6. Biology.

   1. fertilized, as an egg or ovum; fecundated.

   2. capable of growth or development, as seeds or eggs.

7. Botany.

   1. capable of producing sexual reproductive structures.

   2. capable of causing fertilization, as an anther with fully developed pollen.

   3. having spore-bearing organs, as a frond.

8. Physics. (of a nuclide) capable of being transmuted into a fissile nuclide by irradiation with neutrons.

   Uranium 238 and thorium 232 are fertile nuclides.

9. produced in abundance.

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fertile British  

/ ˈfɜːtaɪl /

adjective

1. capable of producing offspring

2. 1. (of land) having nutrients capable of sustaining an abundant growth of plants

   2. (of farm animals) capable of breeding stock

3. biology

   1. capable of undergoing growth and development

      fertile seeds

      fertile eggs

   2. (of plants) capable of producing gametes, spores, seeds, or fruits

4. producing many offspring; prolific

5. highly productive; rich; abundant

   a fertile brain

6. physics (of a substance) able to be transformed into fissile or fissionable material, esp in a nuclear reactor

7. conducive to productiveness

   fertile rain

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fertile Scientific  

/ fûr′tl /

1. Capable of producing offspring, seeds, or fruit.

2. Capable of developing into a complete organism; fertilized.

3. Capable of supporting plant life; favorable to the growth of crops and plants.

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Related Words

See productive.

Other Word Forms

• fertilely adverb
• fertileness noun
• half-fertile adjective
• half-fertilely adverb
• half-fertileness noun
• nonfertile adjective
• overfertile adjective
• prefertile adjective
• unfertile adjective

Etymology

Origin of fertile

First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English (from Middle French ), from Latin fertilis “fruitful,” akin to ferre “to bear”; bear ¹, -ile

Example Sentences

In recent decades—since the 1970s—the Broadway musical has waxed and waned in terms of both quality and popularity, with fertile and fallow periods.

From The Wall Street Journal

I think of the clanging pots, our giant compost heap that turned back into fertile soil, the cozy nights knitting for the farmers market, the green trees and fresh air.

From Literature

But once the initial volatility fades, IPOs can become fertile ground for investors.

From Barron's

But once the initial volatility fades, IPOs can become fertile ground for investors.

From Barron's

An artificial-intelligence boom through most of the year—and subsequent concerns about a bubble—also provided fertile ground for investors who bet on stocks.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• abundant
• arable
• fruitful
• lush
• productive
• rich