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fertile4 entries found for fertile.To select an entry, click on it. Main Entry: fer·tile Pronunciation: 'f&r-t&l Function: adjective Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French & Latin; Middle French, from Latin fertilis, from ferre to carry, bear -- more at BEAR 1 a : producing or bearing fruit in great quantities : PRODUCTIVE b : characterized by great resourcefulness of thought or imagination : INVENTIVE <a fertile mind> c obsolete : PLENTIFUL 2 a (1) : capable of sustaining abundant plant growth <fertile soil> (2) : affording abundant possibilities for growth or development <damp bathrooms are fertile ground for fungi --Consumer Reports> <a fertile area for research> b : capable of growing or developing <a fertile egg> c (1) : capable of producing fruit (2) of an anther : containing pollen (3) : developing spores or spore-bearing organs d : capable of breeding or reproducing 3 : capable of being converted into fissionable material <fertile uranium 238> - fer·tile·ly - fer·tile·ness synonyms FERTILE, FECUND, FRUITFUL, PROLIFIC mean producing or capable of producing offspring or fruit. FERTILE implies the power to reproduce in kind or to assist in reproduction and growth <fertile soil>; applied figuratively, it suggests readiness of invention and development <a fertile imagination>. FECUND emphasizes abundance or rapidity in bearing fruit or offspring <a fecund herd>. FRUITFUL adds to FERTILE and FECUND the implication of desirable or useful results <fruitful research>. PROLIFIC stresses rapidity of spreading or multiplying by or as if by natural reproduction <a prolific writer>.
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