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• seed
  seed

  noun

  the fertilized, matured ovule of a flowering plant, containing an embryo or rudimentary plant.
• SEED
  SEED

  abbreviation

  Scottish Executive Education Department

seed

American  

[seed] / sid /

noun

• seeds,
  plural
• seed
  plural

1. the fertilized, matured ovule of a flowering plant, containing an embryo or rudimentary plant.

2. any propagative part of a plant, including tubers, bulbs, etc., especially as preserved for growing a new crop.

3. such parts collectively.

4. any similar small part or fruit.

5. Dialect. pit.

6. the germ or propagative source of anything.

   the seeds of discord.

7. offspring; progeny.

   Synonyms:

   issue, posterity

8. birth.

   not of mortal seed.

9. sperm; semen.

10. the ovum or ova of certain animals, as the lobster and the silkworm moth.

11. seed oyster.

12. a small air bubble in a glass piece, caused by defective firing.

13. Crystallography, Chemistry. a small crystal added to a solution to promote crystallization.

14. Tennis. a player who has been seeded in a tournament.

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verb (used with object)

• seeds,
  present (3rd person singular)
• seeded,
  past participle,  past
• seeding
  present participle

1. to sow (a field, lawn, etc.) with seed.

2. to sow or scatter (seed).

3. to sow or scatter (clouds) with crystals or particles of silver iodide, solid carbon dioxide, etc., to induce precipitation.

4. to place, introduce, etc., especially in the hope of increase or profit.

   to seed a lake with trout.

5. to sprinkle on (a surface, substance, etc.) in the manner of seed.

   to seed an icy bridge with chemicals.

6. to remove the seeds from (fruit).

7. Sports.

   1. to arrange (the drawings for positions in a tournament) so that ranking players or teams will not meet in the early rounds of play.

   2. to distribute (ranking players or teams) in this manner.

8. to develop or stimulate (a business, project, etc.), especially by providing operating capital.

verb (used without object)

• seeds,
  present (3rd person singular)
• seeded,
  past participle,  past
• seeding
  present participle

1. to sow seed.

2. to produce or shed seed.

adjective

1. of or producing seed; used for seed.

   a seed potato.

2. being or providing capital for the initial stages of a new business or other enterprise.

   The research project began with seed donations from the investors.

idioms

1. go / run to seed,

   1. (of the flower of a plant) to pass to the stage of yielding seed.

   2. to lose vigor, power, or prosperity; deteriorate.

      He has gone to seed in the last few years.

2. in seed,

   1. (of certain plants) in the state of bearing ripened seeds.

   2. (of a field, a lawn, etc.) sown with seed.

seed ¹ British  

/ siːd /

noun

1. botany a mature fertilized plant ovule, consisting of an embryo and its food store surrounded by a protective seed coat (testa)

2. the small hard seedlike fruit of plants such as wheat

3. (loosely) any propagative part of a plant, such as a tuber, spore, or bulb

4. such parts collectively

5. the source, beginning, or germ of anything

   the seeds of revolt

6. Bible offspring or descendants

   the seed of Abraham

7. an archaic or dialect term for sperm 1 semen

8. sport a seeded player

9. the egg cell or cells of the lobster and certain other animals

10. See seed oyster

11. chem a small crystal added to a supersaturated solution or supercooled liquid to induce crystallization

12. 1. (of plants) to produce and shed seeds

    2. to lose vigour, usefulness, etc

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verb

1. to plant (seeds, grain, etc) in (soil)

   we seeded this field with oats

2. (intr) (of plants) to form or shed seeds

3. (tr) to remove the seeds from (fruit, etc)

4. (tr) chem to add a small crystal to (a supersaturated solution or supercooled liquid) in order to cause crystallization

5. (tr) to scatter certain substances, such as silver iodide, in (clouds) in order to cause rain

6. (tr)

   1. to arrange (the draw of a tournament) so that outstanding teams or players will not meet in the early rounds

   2. to distribute (players or teams) in this manner

SEED ² British  

abbreviation

1. Scottish Executive Education Department

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seed Scientific  

/ sēd /

1. A mature fertilized ovule of angiosperms and gymnosperms that contains an embryo and the food it will need to grow into a new plant. Seeds provide a great reproductive advantage in being able to survive for extended periods until conditions are favorable for germination and growth. The seeds of gymnosperms (such as the conifers) develop on scales of cones or similar structures, while the seeds of angiosperms are enclosed in an ovary that develops into a fruit, such as a pome or nut. The structure of seeds varies somewhat. All seeds are enclosed in a protective seed coat. In certain angiosperms the embryo is enclosed in or attached to an endosperm, a tissue that it uses as a food source either before or during germination. All angiosperm embryos also have at least one cotyledon. The first seed-bearing plants emerged at least 365 million years ago in the late Devonian Period. Many angiosperms have evolved specific fruits for dispersal of seeds by the wind, water, or animals.

2. See more at germination ovule

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1. To plant seeds in soil.

2. To initiate rainfall or to generate additional rainfall by artificially increasing the precipitation efficiency of clouds.

3. See more at cloud seeding

seed More Idioms  

1. see run to seed.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• seedlessness
  noun
• overseed
  verb
• reseed
  verb
• deseed
  verb (used with object)
• seedless
  adjective
• seedlike
  adjective
• underseeded
  adjective
• unseeded
  adjective
• unseeding
  adjective
• well-seeded
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• seed
  plural
• seeds
  plural

Participles

• seeding
  present
• seeded
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• seed
  simple
• seeds
  simple
• have seeded
  perfect
• has seeded
  perfect
• am seeding
  progressive
• are seeding
  progressive
• is seeding
  progressive
• have been seeding
  perfect progressive
• has been seeding
  perfect progressive

Past

• seeded
  simple
• had seeded
  perfect
• was seeding
  progressive
• were seeding
  progressive
• had been seeding
  perfect progressive

Future

• will seed
  simple
• will have seeded
  perfect
• will be seeding
  progressive
• will have been seeding
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of seed

before 900; (noun) Middle English sede, side, seed ( e ), Old English sēd, sǣd; cognate with German Saat, Old Norse sāth, Gothic -seths; (v.) Middle English seden to produce seeds, derivative of the noun; akin to sow 1

Explanation

A seed is basically a baby plant — it's the way plants reproduce. One tiny sunflower seed can potentially grow into a sunflower that's ten feet tall. Some seeds are just a tiny speck, others a small pod, and still others a cluster inside a fruit. As a verb, seed means "remove the seeds from," so you can seed a lemon or a pomegranate (and in the latter case, you can then eat the seeds you've seeded). You also seed when you scatter seeds in a garden. Figuratively, seed is often used to mean "provide money to start a business" or "help something grow."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

seed SEED seeds seeded seeding

In the men's event, sixth seed Daniil Medvedev produced 12 aces to beat Spain's Pablo Carreno Busta 6-4 6-2.

From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026

It became one of several private seed herds that helped restock the continent and bolstered the herd at Yellowstone with 18 animals.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026

The spinoff ”allows for greater freedom to operate with other seed technologies companies” while preserving the close relationship between Corteva and Vylor, she noted.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 1, 2026

China's world number 85 Wang Xiyu fought back to stun the top seed 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, and will play compatriot Zhang Shuai for the title.

From Barron's ● Oct. 1, 2026

“And how the seed died when it was planted on rocky ground?”

From "Hattie Big Sky" by Kirby Larson

Ms. Foster’s group agreed to deliver $1 million for a new project — SEED, for Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration.

From New York Times ● May 30, 2018

"These studies are really going to fundamentally change the landscape," says Croen, who is a lead investigator on SEED.

From Nature ● Nov. 2, 2011

THE SEED: "The hardest part of this show is coming up with the ideas," says David.

From Time Magazine Archive

"SEED looks like a very innovative model, but it is too early to tell," says Nina Rees, a U.S.

From Time Magazine Archive

Equally important, the field strengths favored by the data, about five to 10 pico-Gauss today, are close to what would be needed for galaxy and cluster magnetic fields to originate from primordial seeds alone.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 4, 2026

As he harvested seeds from the tree, he noted he was taller than others present, adding: "I'm going to reach up here and get these higher ones."

From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026

In the field behind them, a scarecrow in the form of an archer, along with rags fluttering from lines of string, are meant to keep birds from scavenging the newly planted seeds.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

Another, in a blue tunic that echoes the sky, scatters wheat seeds in the new furrows.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

May looked up, her face covered with seeds and fruit juices.

From "Half Upon a Time" by James Riley

The Yankees lost 13 fewer games than the AL West champion Houston Astros and 10 fewer games than the AL Central champion Guardians, both seeded ahead of them.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2026

Neither dropped a set on their way to the last 16, while American pair Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff - seeded third and fourth - progressed without any serious scares.

From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026

This week, she arrived as the world No. 18, and seeded 17th at the tournament.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 30, 2026

But those involved also highlight the significant risk of failure due to numerous factors, not least because not just any cloud can be seeded.

From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026

The second day those forty-eight fencers from the first day join the top sixteen seeded fencers in the world to complete the elimination rounds of the tableau of sixty-four.

From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad

"Not only were the galaxies producing these elements, but they were also dispersing them, possibly seeding other galaxies."

From Science Daily ● Oct. 2, 2026

Cloud seeding involves manipulating existing clouds, such as by dropping salt crystals or silver iodide into them, to help produce more rain.

From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026

For another, seeding the idea that they’re close to such breakthroughs can also have the advantageous effect of driving investment in an era where none of these companies have found a path to profitability.

From Salon ● Sep. 12, 2026

This is an important game for City Section playoff seeding purposes and also provides more evidence of which team will compete for a league title.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026

Glowing droplets of eau de toilette streamed out behind me, instantly vaporizing into a silver mist that caught the eddies and spread, seeding the cloud.

From "City of the Plague God" by Sarwat Chadda

Related Words

• berry
• corn
• egg
• grain
• nut