fertility
Americannoun
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the state or quality of being fertile.
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Biology. the ability to produce offspring; power of reproduction.
the amazing fertility of rabbits.
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the birthrate of a population.
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(of soil) the capacity to supply nutrients in proper amounts for plant growth when other factors are favorable.
noun
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the ability to produce offspring, esp abundantly
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the state or quality of being fertile
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of fertility
1375–1425; late Middle English fertilite (< Middle French ) < Latin fertilitās. See fertile, -ity
Explanation
Fertility is the ability to have babies or to reproduce. When fertility rates in a community increase, more babies are born. Fertility is the quality of a human's ability to produce offspring, which is dependent on age, health, and other factors. The noun can also refer to the state of a plant or animal's being capable of reproduction. When you hear about "fertility rates," it means the number of births that happen during a certain time period in a specific location. The Latin root word is fertilis, "bearing in abundance or fruitful," from ferre, "to bear."
Vocabulary lists containing fertility
Bless Me, Ultima
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Content Summary G.3: Spatial Reorganization
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American Street
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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.
Graphs show how fertility rates in the east plummeted while there was a huge exodus west, which came in two main waves.
From BBC • Jun. 29, 2026
It says it will continue to work with NHS England to make sure men's fertility is "properly reflected in how services are designed and delivered".
From BBC • Jun. 26, 2026
The result, she argues, is often self‑perpetuating - some fertility services don't include men, so men engage less, which reinforces the idea they are simply not interested.
From BBC • Jun. 26, 2026
James did not see his fertility problems as a challenge to his masculinity, but the stigma surrounding the issue meant he struggled to find support during that time.
From BBC • Jun. 26, 2026
Here and there are worms, evidence of the fertility of the soil, caught by the sun, half dead; flexible and pink, like lips.
From "The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood
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.
