sprout

[ sprout ]

/ spraʊt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR sprout ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object)

to begin to grow; shoot forth, as a plant from a seed.

(of a seed or plant) to put forth buds or shoots.

to develop or grow quickly: a boy awkwardly sprouting into manhood.

verb (used with object)

to cause to sprout.

to remove sprouts from: Sprout and boil the potatoes.

noun

a shoot of a plant.

a new growth from a germinating seed, or from a rootstock, tuber, bud, or the like.

something resembling or suggesting a sprout, as in growth.

a young person; youth.

sprouts,

the young shoots of alfalfa, soybeans, etc., eaten as a raw vegetable.
Brussels sprout.

Nearby words

spritzig, sproat, sprocket, sprocket hole, sprog, sprout, spruance, spruance, raymond ames, spruce, spruce beer, spruce beetle

Origin of sprout

1150–1200; (v.) Middle English spr(o)uten, Old English -sprūtan, in āsproten (past participle; see a-³); cognate with Middle Dutch sprūten, German spriessen to sprout; akin to Greek speírein to scatter; (noun) Middle English; compare Middle Dutch, Middle Low German sprute

SYNONYMS FOR sprout

1 spring, bud, burgeon, develop.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR sprout ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

non·sprout·ing, adjectivere·sprout, verbun·der·sprout, nounun·der·sprout, verb (used without object)

un·sprout·ed, adjectiveun·sprout·ing, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for sprout

I particularly believed that from the ashes of the unrest we could work to sprout new hope for our community.
Wendy Greuel on L.A. Riots: ‘We Still Have a Long Way to Go’|Wendy Greuel|April 27, 2012|DAILY BEAST
(→) a coconuts with dry, oilless meat that is easily detached from its shell, and which has failed to sprout.
A Dictionary of Cebuano Visayan|John U. Wolff
"Mr. Du Boung had intended to stand himself," said Mr. Sprout.
The Duke's Children|Anthony Trollope
I cultivate right over the tops of the rows and keep on cultivating until the asparagus comes up and begins to sprout.
Trees, Fruits and Flowers of Minnesota, 1916|Various

Each joint of the cane has an eye, like the eye of a potato, which sends forth a sprout when buried in the soil.
Twelve Years a Slave|Solomon Northup
"The grass is just beginning to sprout on the plains, Mr. Calhoun," I began eagerly.
54-40 or Fight|Emerson Hough

British Dictionary definitions for sprout

sprout

/ (spraʊt) /

verb

(of a plant, seed, etc) to produce (new leaves, shoots, etc)

(intr often foll by up) to begin to grow or developnew office blocks are sprouting up all over the city

noun

a newly grown shoot or bud

something that grows like a sprout

See Brussels sprout

Word Origin for sprout

Old English sprūtan; related to Middle High German sprūzen to sprout, Lettish sprausties to jostle

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 sprout (1 of 2)

sprout

Old English -sprutan (in asprutan "to sprout"), from Proto-Germanic *spreutanan (cf. Old Saxon sprutan, Old Frisian spruta, Middle Dutch spruten, Old High German spriozan, German sprießen "to sprout"), from PIE root *sper- "to strew" (cf. Greek speirein "to scatter," spora "a scattering, sowing," sperma "sperm, seed," literally "that which is scattered;" Old English spreawlian "to sprawl," -sprædan "to spread," spreot "pole;" Armenian sprem "scatter;" Old Lithuanian sprainas "staring;" Lettish spriezu "I span, I measure"). Related: Sprouted; sprouting.

Word Origin and History for sprout (1 of 2)

sprout

"shoot of a plant, sprout; a twig," Old English sprota (see sprout (v.)).

sprout

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

noun

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Origin of sprout

Examples from the Web for sprout

British Dictionary definitions for sprout

sprout

verb

noun

Word Origin for sprout

Word Origin and History for sprout (1 of 2)

sprout

Word Origin and History for sprout (1 of 2)

sprout