agriculture
Americannoun
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the science, art, or occupation concerned with cultivating land, raising crops, and feeding, breeding, and raising livestock; farming.
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the production of crops, livestock, or poultry.
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of agriculture
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin agrīcultūra, from agrī (genitive singular of ager “field”) + cultūra culture
Explanation
Agriculture describes the practice of growing crops or raising animals. Someone who works as a farmer is in the agriculture industry. The Latin root of agriculture is agri, or "field," plus cultura, "cultivation." Cultivating a piece of land, or planting and growing food plants on it, is largely what agriculture means. Raising animals for meat or milk also falls under the category of agriculture. If we didn't have agriculture, we'd all be running around the woods, picking berries and trying to shoot things.
Vocabulary lists containing agriculture
The Industrial Revolution - Introductory
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Down on the Farm
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The United States
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"Producers can export or raise prices," said Nader Nour Eldeen, a former supplies ministry advisor and now a Cairo University agriculture professor.
From Barron's • May 15, 2026
He also called for expanded cooperation in trade, agriculture, healthcare, tourism and law enforcement, describing bilateral ties as "mutually beneficial" and delivering "win-win results".
From BBC • May 14, 2026
The US leader is hoping to seal business deals in sectors including agriculture, aviation and artificial intelligence, but will also look for geopolitical progress in areas including the Middle East war.
From Barron's • May 14, 2026
The EPA said that in addition to data-center cooling, its new initiative focuses on water needed for microchip and battery, automobile, and food and beverage manufacturing, as well as agriculture production.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 13, 2026
Thus, agriculture could arise in the Fertile Crescent from domestication of locally available wild plants, without having to wait for the arrival of crops derived from wild plants domesticated elsewhere.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
