cultivated
Americanadjective
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prepared and used for raising crops; tilled.
cultivated land.
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produced or improved by cultivation, as a plant.
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educated; refined; cultured.
cultivated tastes.
adjective
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cultured, refined, or educated
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subjected to tillage or cultivation
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tilled and broken up
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(of plants) specially bred or improved by cultivation
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of cultivated
Explanation
The adjective cultivated is used to describe someone who is polite and civilized. The cultivated people at the party would be very offended by crude behavior. Someone who's cultivated is knowledgeable or at least familiar with the arts, current events, history. He or she probably has traveled widely, or at least has read about other people and places. In other words, a cultivated person is a citizen of the world. As it applies to farming, cultivated soil is tilled, or churned, to prepare it for planting.
Vocabulary lists containing cultivated
"The Most Dangerous Game" by Richard Connell
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Persepolis
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100 SAT words Beginning with "C"
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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.
Most black truffles now come from truffle plantations or cultivated truffle grounds, where trees have had their roots soaked in a truffle‑based slurry to encourage the fungus to grow.
From Barron's ● Nov. 4, 2026
His instantly recognisable power suit and red tie, ever-present in film and reality TV, were cultivated even before he moved into the White House.
From BBC ● Oct. 31, 2026
Sand has long cultivated a moderate image and played up pursuits like his love of hunting and predilection for gas station breakfast pizza.
From Slate ● Oct. 26, 2026
The team cultivated 25 different species of gut bacteria, including microorganisms considered beneficial, neutral, or potentially harmful.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 18, 2026
His voice reminded me a little of Willem’s, deep, cultivated, the German with only a trace of Dutch accent.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.