fertilize

[ fur-tl-ahyz ]

/ ˈfɜr tlˌaɪz /

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verb (used with object), fer·ti·lized, fer·ti·liz·ing.

Biology.

to render (the female gamete) capable of development by uniting it with the male gamete.
to fecundate or impregnate (an animal or plant).

to make fertile; enrich: to fertilize farmland.

to make productive.

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Also especially British, fer·ti·lise .

Origin of fertilize

First recorded in 1640–50; fertile + -ize

OTHER WORDS FROM fertilize

fer·ti·liz·a·ble, adjectivefer·ti·liz·a·bil·i·ty, nouno·ver·fer·ti·lize, verb (used with object), o·ver·fer·ti·lized, o·ver·fer·ti·liz·ing.pre·fer·ti·lize, verb (used with object), pre·fer·ti·lized, pre·fer·ti·liz·ing.

re·fer·ti·liz·a·ble, adjectivere·fer·ti·lize, verb (used with object), re·fer·ti·lized, re·fer·ti·liz·ing.un·fer·ti·liz·a·ble, adjectiveun·fer·ti·lized, adjectiveun·fer·ti·liz·ing, adjective

Words nearby fertilize

fertility cult, fertility drug, fertility factor, fertility symbol, fertilization, fertilize, fertilizer, fertilizin, ferula, ferule, ferulic acid

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use fertilize in a sentence

Doctors at NYU Langone saw a 41% year-over-year increase in women fertilizing their eggs.
Data Show More Women Are Freezing Their Eggs During the Pandemic, Defying Doctors’ Expectations|Eliana Dockterman|January 13, 2021|Time
With this approach, conventional farming practices such as watering and fertilizing crops are performed at the right place and time, and with the appropriate intensity.
How technology rewrites your diet|Amy Nordrum|December 18, 2020|MIT Technology Review
The eggs are moved to the lab, where they are fertilized and the CRISPR molecules are introduced.
Gene editing has made pigs immune to a deadly epidemic|Katie McLean|December 11, 2020|MIT Technology Review
My hypothesis is that fertilized plants will be bigger than those that are not fertilized.
How to grow your own science experiment|Bethany Brookshire|December 9, 2020|Science News For Students

The fertilized waters prompt a bloom of phytoplankton that attracts krill—which, despite the crabeaters’ name, is a favorite meal of the seals.
These Photos Remind Us Why Conservation Matters - Issue 92: Frontiers|Kevin Berger|November 11, 2020|Nautilus
The animals proved to be a great attraction as well as a handy way to fertilize the grass and keep it short.
Central Park’s Carriages Saved This Horse|Michael Daly|April 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Some is sold as a liming agent, and some is disposed of in landfills (though it used to be sent to Colorado to fertilize crops).
Toilet Made for Densely Populated Settlements Turns Waste Into Dollars|Mike Miesen|April 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Their byproduct is used to organically fertilize the food, while the plants naturally clean the fish tanks.
Vertical Indoor Farms Are Growing in the U.S.|Miranda Green|May 7, 2013|DAILY BEAST
I fertilize them and I shower them, but they stubbornly refuse to do well.
Amateur Gardencraft|Eben E. Rexford
German laws, German language, German civilization are to find no ground for replenishing, no soil to fertilize and make rich.
The Crime Against Europe|Roger Casement
This is one of the consequences of the Nubians depending upon the overflow of the Nile to fertilize their soil.
Our Caughnawagas in Egypt|Louis Jackson
This is the most effectual of inventions to fertilize the rich man's fields by the sweat of the poor man's brow.
Complete State of the Union Addresses from 1790 to 2006|Various
The fountains of sympathy, of gratitude, of love, were opened; might not these waters prove sufficient to fertilize a life?
Harper's New Monthly Magazine, No. IX.--February, 1851.--Vol. II.|Various

British Dictionary definitions for fertilize

fertilize

fertilise

/ (ˈfɜːtɪˌlaɪz) /

verb (tr)

to provide (an animal, plant, or egg cell) with sperm or pollen to bring about fertilization

to supply (soil or water) with mineral and organic nutrients to aid the growth of plants

to make fertile or productive

Derived forms of fertilize

fertilizable or fertilisable, adjective

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

fertilize

Origin of fertilize

OTHER WORDS FROM fertilize

Words nearby fertilize

Words related to fertilize

How to use fertilize in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for fertilize

fertilise

Derived forms of fertilize