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fertility

[fer-til-i-tee]
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noun
  1. the state or quality of being fertile.
  2. Biology. the ability to produce offspring; power of reproduction: the amazing fertility of rabbits.
  3. the birthrate of a population.
  4. (of soil) the capacity to supply nutrients in proper amounts for plant growth when other factors are favorable.
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Origin of fertility

1375–1425; late Middle English fertilite (< Middle French) < Latin fertilitās. See fertile, -ity
Related formsnon·fer·til·i·ty, nouno·ver·fer·til·i·ty, nounpre·fer·til·i·ty, nounun·fer·til·i·ty, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

pregnancyvirilitypotencyproductivityabundancepubertyrichnessproductivenessfruitfulnessgravidityfecundityprolificacycopiousnessluxuriancepubescenceprolificity

Examples from the Web for fertility

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • That the stream of literature had passed over, it was apparent only from its fertility.

  • What astonishes me is his fertility in the arts of denunciation and scandalmongering.

  • He has such huge energy at the back of his fertility of invention.

  • This resourcefulness and fertility of method are conspicuous characteristics of him.

    Herbert Hoover

    Vernon Kellogg

  • Indeed, the entire surroundings of Orizaba are gardenlike in fertility and bloom.

    Aztec Land

    Maturin M. Ballou

British Dictionary definitions for fertility

fertility

noun
  1. the ability to produce offspring, esp abundantly
  2. the state or quality of being fertile
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for fertility

n.

early 15c., from Middle French fertilité, from Latin fertilitatem (nominative fertilitas) "fruitfulness, fertility," from fertilis (see fertile).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
fertility in Medicine

fertility

(fər-tĭl′ĭ-tē)
n.
  1. The state of being fertile, especially the ability to produce young.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
fertility in Science

fertile

[fûr′tl]
  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.
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Related formsfertility noun
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.