fertilizer

American  

[fur-tl-ahy-zer] / ˈfɜr tlˌaɪ zər /

noun

• fertilizers
  plural

1. any substance used to fertilize the soil, especially a commercial or chemical manure.

2. a person, insect, etc., that fertilizes an animal or plant.

   Bees are fertilizers of flowers.

---

fertilizer British  

/ ˈfɜːtɪˌlaɪzə /

noun

1. any substance, such as manure or a mixture of nitrates, added to soil or water to increase its productivity

2. an object or organism such as an insect that fertilizes an animal or plant

---

fertilizer Scientific  

/ fûr′tl-ī′zər /

1. Any of a large number of natural and synthetic materials, including manure and compounds containing nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, spread on or worked into soil to increase its capacity to support plant growth. Synthetic fertilizers can greatly increase the productivity of soil but have high energy costs, since fossil fuels are required as a source of hydrogen, which is necessary to fix nitrogen in ammonia.

---

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• fertilizers
  plural

Etymology

Origin of fertilizer

First recorded in 1655–65; fertilize + -er ¹

Explanation

Material you add to a garden to increase the nutrients in the soil and help plants grow is called fertilizer. If your rosebushes are looking a little sad, you might want to try using fertilizer. To fertilize is to make something fertile, or to encourage it to grow or reproduce. These words, along with fertilizer, come from the Latin fertilis, "bearing in abundance, fruitful, or productive." The most common kind of organic fertilizer is animal manure or peat, and other fertilizers are made of specific nutrients like nitrogen or potassium. Fertilizers are usually solid, though they come in liquid form as well.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fertilizer fertilizers

Its closure of the Strait of Hormuz has caused pain around the world in the form of price hikes and shortages of fertilizer and energy.

From Barron's ● Aug. 30, 2026

When that happens, gardeners may want to consider whether they are using too much fertilizer.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 28, 2026

“Right at the onset of the Iran war, fertilizer prices increased sharply due to disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz,” says Christopher Pudenz, 32, an economist in Des Moines.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026

Lower market prices for farm commodities and higher costs for fuel and fertilizer have eroded farmers’ incomes, causing them to refrain from buying new tractors, harvesters and other equipment.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026

In his travels, Tisquantum stayed in places where Europeans used fish as fertilizer, a practice on the Continent since medieval times.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

These include keeping soil permanently covered, applying compost, using more diverse crop rotations and reducing the use of mineral fertilizers and pesticides.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 28, 2026

This is especially true for their company, which employs about 130,000 people across more than 50 countries and has interests in paper products, petroleum, pipelines, chemicals, fertilizers, electronic components, logistics and more.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026

Certain energy products and fertilizers will also be exempt, alongside products covered by the US-Mexico-Canada free trade pact, a US official told reporters.

From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026

It said they’re now able to withstand freak weather and require less nitrogen based fertilizers to get the same crops.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 23, 2026

Even with the modern availability of synthetic fertilizers produced by chemical factories, the major source of crop fertilizer today in most societies is still animal manure—especially of cows, but also of yaks and sheep.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

Related Words

• manure