fertile

[fur-tl, -tahyl]

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.

fertile

/ 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

fertile

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.

Other Word Forms

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of fertile¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of fertile¹

C15: from Latin fertilis , from ferre to bear

Synonym Study

See productive.

Example Sentences

Rather than being shaped only by river floods, the region's growth was tied to predictable tidal patterns that provided both water and fertile soil.

Read more on Science Daily

As the country expanded and farms began to dot the Midwest, the number of agriculture workers increased significantly along large stretches of fertile land in the South.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

In a Mediterranean-like climate and using the fertile soil, they grow peanuts, oranges, apples and strawberries - rare crops for a country now facing one of the world's worst hunger crises.

Read more on BBC

Delta regions are naturally flat and fertile, making them ideal for farming, transport, and urban development.

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That made Saudi Arabia a dour place and a fertile ground for extremism.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

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