Fertile



GRE Barron TOEFL 考研

解释

GRE 红宝书

• n.多产的; 肥沃的
• ［英］ n.多产的 ( producing abundantly) ; 肥沃的 ( fecund; prolific)
• ［记］ fert ( =fer带来, 结果) +ile -> 可带来果实的 -> 多产的
• ［例］ fertile soil.

Webster Collegiate

adjective

• Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French & Latin; Middle French, from Latin fertilis, from ferre to carry, bear — more at bear
• Date: 15th century
• 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>
• ? fertilely adverb
• ? fertileness noun
• 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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