sprout

American  

[sprout] / spraʊt /

verb (used without object)

• sprouts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• sprouted,
  past participle,  past
• sprouting
  present participle

1. to begin to grow; shoot forth, as a plant from a seed.

   Synonyms:

   develop, burgeon, bud, spring

2. (of a seed or plant) to put forth buds or shoots.

3. to develop or grow quickly.

   a boy awkwardly sprouting into manhood.

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verb (used with object)

• sprouts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• sprouted,
  past participle,  past
• sprouting
  present participle

1. to cause to sprout.

2. to remove sprouts from.

   Sprout and boil the potatoes.

noun

• sprouts
  plural

1. a shoot of a plant.

2. a new growth from a germinating seed, or from a rootstock, tuber, bud, or the like.

3. something resembling or suggesting a sprout, as in growth.

4. a young person; youth.

5. sprouts,

   1. the young shoots of alfalfa, soybeans, etc., eaten as a raw vegetable.

   2. Brussels sprout.

sprout British  

/ spraʊt /

verb

1. (of a plant, seed, etc) to produce (new leaves, shoots, etc)

2. to begin to grow or develop

   new office blocks are sprouting up all over the city

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noun

1. a newly grown shoot or bud

2. something that grows like a sprout

3. See Brussels sprout

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• undersprout
  noun
• resprout
  verb
• undersprout
  verb (used without object)
• nonsprouting
  adjective
• unsprouted
  adjective
• unsprouting
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• sprouts
  plural

Participles

• sprouting
  present
• sprouted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• sprout
  simple
• sprouts
  simple
• have sprouted
  perfect
• has sprouted
  perfect
• am sprouting
  progressive
• are sprouting
  progressive
• is sprouting
  progressive
• have been sprouting
  perfect progressive
• has been sprouting
  perfect progressive

Past

• sprouted
  simple
• had sprouted
  perfect
• was sprouting
  progressive
• were sprouting
  progressive
• had been sprouting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will sprout
  simple
• will have sprouted
  perfect
• will be sprouting
  progressive
• will have been sprouting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of sprout

1150–1200; (v.) Middle English spr ( o ) uten, Old English -sprūtan, in āsproten (past participle; see a- ³); cognate with Middle Dutch sprūten, German spriessen to sprout; akin to Greek speírein to scatter; (noun) Middle English; compare Middle Dutch, Middle Low German sprute

Explanation

A sprout is a small growth on a plant — a little new bud. Other things can sprout too: kids are constantly sprouting (growing). The key thing to think of when you're trying to remember the meaning of sprout is growth — as a noun, a sprout is a new growth of a plant, and as a verb, to sprout means to grow. Sprouting mainly applies to height and to the young, whether you're talking about plants, people, or things. An older person who gains fifty pounds is growing but not sprouting.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sprout sprouts sprouted sprouting

Recalling where certain plants sprout first in the spring can help hungry animals find important nutrients.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026

The Buck Moon - named after the time male deer sprout new antlers - will rise on 29 July.

From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2026

The cinema is a place where new ideas sprout and beliefs are forged.

From Salon ● Apr. 9, 2026

California’s deserts are bursting with color as strong wildflower displays sprout across the fields of Southern California.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 10, 2026

The idea slowly forming in his mind was no more than a budding sprout; small, impossible, but...it was there.

From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray

"Bracken sprouts almost immediately because its rhizomes sit deep in the soil, so the burn layer wouldn't maybe have impacted those" she said.

From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026

For the gardeners: At first, they look like unassuming sprouts.

From Slate ● Sep. 11, 2026

The fields of Eshtiwi show only the first faint signs of growth in June, with small green sprouts emerging around the village.

From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026

There is no shortage of access to Brussels sprouts; people simply prefer to eat the wrong things.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 17, 2026

A small tree, something that looks native to the palm family, sprouts from behind the woman, distracting me further: Do palm trees grow in New York?

From "Better Nate Than Ever" by Tim Federle

England will want to build on the green shoots of recovery that sprouted in Leeds.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026

Fans marched to last Thursday’s afternoon game with Qatar wearing Canadian flags draped over their shoulders and headdresses that sprouted small maple leafs.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 23, 2026

Surveillance software sprouted in every cranny of the ballpark, first in service of providing more data for teams and front offices to pore over, then as fuel for ever more esoteric betting propositions.

From Salon ● Apr. 13, 2026

A home-construction boom sprouted across America in the roaring 1920s.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 5, 2026

Both girls look at him as if he has sprouted wings.

From "Before We Were Free" by Julia Alvarez

Visitors can expect yellows and splashes of orange, with more flowers sprouting every day.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 10, 2026

Images of seabirds, fish, and sprouting maize appear together on textiles, ceramics, pottery, wall carvings and paintings.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 7, 2026

Only raccoons are said to live in the Karlshorst buildings and birch saplings are sprouting out of a balcony.

From Barron's ● Feb. 8, 2026

Humanoid-robotics companies are sprouting up from Shenzhen to Suzhou, with more than 140 and counting.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 7, 2026

A small wooden table and a pair of broken-down easy chairs, both sprouting stuffing, completed the furnishings.

From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson

Related Words

• burgeon
• germinate
• grow