fertilize

fertilize — verb

1. to put nutrient-rich material such as compost or chemical fertilizer into the gr

1.verbtransitiveB1
Definition

to put nutrient-rich material such as compost or chemical fertilizer into the ground, helping plants grow larger and produce more

Example

Aoi fertilizes her vegetable garden every spring before planting tomatoes.

collocation: fertilize garden before planting

The farmers fertilized the rice fields with cow manure for a better harvest.

collocation: fertilize fields with manure

Common collocations
  • fertilize the soil
  • fertilize the garden
  • fertilize the fields
  • fertilize crops
  • fertilize with manure / compost / chemicals
Synonyms
  • feed

    less technical, used for both plants and animals (feed the plants with liquid fertilizer)

  • enrich

    more general; often used for soil specifically (enrich the soil with organic matter)

  • nourish

    more formal, implies ongoing care through nutrients (nourish the garden throughout the season)

Antonyms
  • deplete

    remove or use up the nutrients in soil (years of farming depleted the soil)

  • exhaust

    use up all the nutrients so the soil is no longer productive (exhaust the soil by over-cropping)

Grammar Patterns

fertilize + noun (soil / land / plants / fields / garden)

Usage Note

The object is usually the soil, land, or field rather than the plant itself. You fertilize the soil so that the plants growing in it get the nutrients they need.

Common Mistakes

I fertilized the flowers with water.
I fertilized the garden with compost.
Fertilizing means adding nutrients or plant food, not just water.

2. to cause a male reproductive cell (sperm or pollen) to join with a female egg or

2.verbtransitiveB2
Definition

to cause a male reproductive cell (sperm or pollen) to join with a female egg or ovule, so that a new living thing begins to form

Example

A male bee fertilizes the queen bee's eggs during the mating flight.

collocation: fertilize eggs (animals)

The flower's pollen fertilized the ovules, and seeds began to grow.

Common collocations
  • fertilize an egg
  • fertilize an ovule
  • fertilized by sperm
  • fertilized by pollen
  • fertilize a seed
Synonyms
  • impregnate

    more formal, mainly used for mammals including humans; has a stronger physical connotation

  • pollinate

    for plants only; refers to pollen landing on the stigma, not necessarily the joining of cells inside the ovule

Antonyms
  • sterilize

    make an organism unable to reproduce (the radiation sterilized the insects)

Grammar Patterns

fertilize + noun (egg / ovule / seed)

be fertilized by + noun (sperm / pollen)

Usage Note

The subject is usually a male reproductive cell (sperm, pollen) or a male organism. This sense is more formal and technical than sense 1 and appears often in science writing. Passive constructions (the egg was fertilized) are very common.

Common Mistakes

The doctor fertilized the patient in the hospital.
The sperm fertilized the egg in a laboratory procedure.
'Fertilize' describes the biological joining of cells, not a medical action performed by a doctor on a person.