as in cultivated
to work by plowing, sowing, and raising crops on
farmers tilling the soil from sunup to sunset
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Recent Examples of tilled
When spring comes, the cover crop can be tilled back into the soil to add nutrients.
—
Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 28 Dec. 2025
These tools – still carrying the soil from which they were tilled – represent the work of the immigrant farmworkers of all backgrounds who helped build California’s agriculture industry, which continues to feed the nation today.
—Sam Vong, The Conversation, 18 Dec. 2025
The wheat fields themselves told their own story—deep brown and newly tilled in autumn, then green in spring, golden in summer.
—Hannah Howard, Travel + Leisure, 22 Nov. 2025
The rest was tilled into the ground.
—Jessica Winter, New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2025
Château de Selle is located inland from the Mediterranean Sea, on limestone hillsides, planted in arid limestone soil––the earth is actually mechanically tilled to crush the rocks; yields from the 345-acre organic (since 2022) estate are low.
—John Mariani, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2025
Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 28 Dec. 2025
These tools – still carrying the soil from which they were tilled – represent the work of the immigrant farmworkers of all backgrounds who helped build California’s agriculture industry, which continues to feed the nation today.
—Sam Vong, The Conversation, 18 Dec. 2025
The wheat fields themselves told their own story—deep brown and newly tilled in autumn, then green in spring, golden in summer.
—Hannah Howard, Travel + Leisure, 22 Nov. 2025
The rest was tilled into the ground.
—Jessica Winter, New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2025
Château de Selle is located inland from the Mediterranean Sea, on limestone hillsides, planted in arid limestone soil––the earth is actually mechanically tilled to crush the rocks; yields from the 345-acre organic (since 2022) estate are low.
—John Mariani, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tilled
Verb
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The metamorphosis — cultivated by the city and fueled by developers — is bringing dramatic change to the Pompano skyline, generating buzz locally and beyond.—
Susannah Bryan,
Sun Sentinel,
14 Mar. 2026
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Stanton cultivated a group of women-abolitionist friends, first at her and Henry’s home, in Boston, and then at a house that her father gave her along the new Erie Canal, in the western New York town of Seneca Falls.—
Moira Donegan,
New Yorker,
13 Mar. 2026
Verb
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For farmers who planted orchards years ago expecting a buyer at harvest, the closure adds new uncertainty to an already risky business.—
Nina Burns,
CBS News,
13 Mar. 2026
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Even though her sales weren’t booming, the experience planted a powerful seed.—
Casey DelBasso,
ABC News,
12 Mar. 2026
Verb
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According to Pott, the vineyard has been farmed organically since its inception.—
K. H. Koehler,
USA Today,
4 Mar. 2026
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The land is farmed organically without pesticides, with a focus on regenerative practices and the potential to expand organic produce production.—
David Caraccio
March 4,
Sacbee.com,
4 Mar. 2026
Verb
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These typically need to be hand-harvested or using some machinery such as trunk shakers.—
Sean Timberlake,
Sacbee.com,
16 Mar. 2026
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Smaller, heavily-competing trees can still be harvested and sold if done in support of restoration and the forest’s return to old-growth characteristics.—
Evan Mills,
Mercury News,
15 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tilled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tilled. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.
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