seed 1 of 2

noun

ˈsēd How to pronounce seed (audio)
Definition of seednext
1
as in root
the source from which something grows or develops ancient Greece provided the seed for much of Western civilization's political and philosophical thought

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in offspring
the descendants of a person, animal, or plant the famous stallion's seed can be found on racetracks all over the world

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

seed

2 of 2

verb

as in to plant
to put or set into the ground to grow seeded grass in the backyard

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of seed
Noun
Most conflicts between humans and bears are traced back to human food, garbage, pet food, bird seed, or other things that attract bears. — Jeanine Santucci, USA Today, 19 Aug. 2026 Lucky opted to send the laptop with the seed phrase to Rand, and then, in the final scene, after years of false promises from John, Lucky finally makes it to the beach. — Derek Lawrence, HollywoodReporter, 19 Aug. 2026
Verb
Other than maybe the last one or two spots, the biggest scramble now in this final month could be for seeding. — ABC News, 10 Aug. 2026 To reseed your yard, or seed a new lawn, remove all existing grass and weeds at the root with a sod cutter. — Amanda Tust, Architectural Digest, 7 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for seed
Recent Examples of Synonyms for seed
  1. root
  2. offspring
  3. plant
  4. origin
  5. fruit
  6. germ
  7. beginning
Noun
  • In this case, the O is designed with roots that represent the land, a lamb for spring and new birth, and an almond blossom petal.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Born and raised in Nogales, Mexico, the fourth of twelve children, Trujillo had deep community roots.
    — Allie Torgan, CNN Money, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of root
Noun
  • Their efforts to hatch and raise offspring at their nest in Big Bear Valley in Southern California became popular with millions of live cam viewers.
    — Don Sweeney, Sacbee.com, 18 Aug. 2026
  • Concurrent surrogacy is used to increase the odds of having a child — in some instances, for rich, single men to create as many of their biological offspring as their egos demand.
    — Arthur L. Caplan, STAT, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of offspring
Verb
  • By allowing wings like Kayla Thornton, Salaun and Kaila Charles to plant themselves on the baseline right outside of the paint, the driving lanes that Chicago enjoyed early were suddenly closed up.
    — Joseph Dycus, Mercury News, 22 Aug. 2026
  • Everyone has their own terrace, prettily planted with bougainvillaea and hibiscus, with a barbecue, sun beds, and hot tub or swimming pool.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of plant
Noun
  • However, this represented only one of several plausible geographic origins of her lineage, according to the researchers.
    — Katie Hunt, CNN Money, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Your guide will teach you about the origins of Prohibition and tell stories of infamous bootleggers.
    — Condé Nast Traveler, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of origin
Noun
  • This is not a medical spa and therefore there is no nutrition concept, but healthful snacks like fruit grown on property and nuts are available in the changing spaces, hydrotherapy zone and the relaxation rooms.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 19 Aug. 2026
  • With all of the experimentation, a lot of fruit died on the vine, and honest post-mortems tell us that business impact was minimal.
    — Cheryl Johnson, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of fruit
Noun
  • Colostrum also contains prebiotics and immune-supporting compounds, which help feed beneficial gut bacteria, prevent harmful germs from attaching to the gut wall, and support a more balanced immune response.
    — Cheryl Fenton, Flow Space, 17 Aug. 2026
  • To note, the Mayo Clinic says a period of latent TB infection usually follows primary infection once immune system cells build a wall around lung tissue with the TB germs.
    — Matthew Ablon, CBS News, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of germ
Noun
  • Many of England’s players only arrived at their club’s pre-season camps at the beginning of August, three weeks after many sides saw the bulk of their squads return.
    — George Edwards, New York Times, 18 Aug. 2026
  • Jurors were shown a photo of a green body bag at the beginning of her questioning, followed by a grisly photo of his body.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of beginning

Phrases Containing seed

Browse Nearby Words

see after
seed
seedbed
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Seed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/seed. Accessed 25 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on seed

Nglish: Translation of seed for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about seed

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of tilde

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

How to Pronounce the Trickiest Menu Items

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Aug. 21

16 Glee-ridden Words from Schitt's Creek
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
alt-684346df967d5
Add A Letter Quiz Pick the letter that goes in the same spot in fou...
See All