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.
It’s also anchored by the stories of a community desperate to claim territory they’ve cultivated for centuries.
From Los Angeles Times • May 9, 2026
For years, Adhikari cultivated the image of a combative organiser with a sharp instinct for power and an ability to turn Bengal's shifting political currents to his advantage.
From BBC • May 8, 2026
"Farmers prefer that support be given by increasing the paddy price," he said, referring to the sale price of cultivated rice.
From Barron's • May 8, 2026
American pistachios are cultivated for maximum output and size, which is a desired quality for traders, but can also undermine the taste and complexities of the nut, some argue.
From Salon • May 6, 2026
For instance, the earliest known cultivated emmer wheat comes from the Fertile Crescent around 8500 B.C.
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.
