Fecund
/ˈfiːkənd/
adjectiveC1
Definition
Fecund describes the ability to produce a lot of new life, like plants or animals, or many ideas and works. It often means fertile (able to grow plants or have babies) or very creative and productive.
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See It in Action
Able to produce many plants or animals; fertile
- •The fecund soil helped the crops grow quickly.
- •Farmers prefer fecund land for planting.
- •The fecund deer population increased every year.
Very productive in ideas or creativity
- •She has a fecund mind that creates many stories.
- •The artist’s fecund imagination led to many paintings.
- •His fecund writing style inspired many readers.
Make It Stick
- ✓Think of "fecund" like "fruitful" (A2 word), but stronger—like a tree that grows many fruits every year without stopping
- ✓Picture a garden full of healthy plants growing everywhere, showing lots of life and energy
- ✓It's the feeling when someone is full of ideas and can create many things quickly and easily
- ✓Sounds like "FEE-cund" → imagine a bee (FEE sounds like "bee") flying from flower to flower, helping plants grow and be productive
- ✓In stories, fertile land or creative minds are called fecund because they give birth to many new things
- ✓NOT like "dry" (no growth), fecund means full of life and growth
- ✓NOT like "barren" (no babies or plants), fecund is the opposite—full of life and growth
- ✓NOT just "creative" (can be small ideas), fecund means very rich and plentiful in ideas or life
- ✓NOT like "productive" in work only, fecund can apply to nature and creativity both
Try Other Words
- •Productive: making a lot of something (Use when talking about work, ideas, or results)
- •Fertile: able to grow plants or have babies (Use when talking about nature, land, or animals)
- •Fruitful: giving good results or many fruits (Use when talking about success or positive results)
- •Creative: full of new ideas (Use when talking about imagination or ideas)
Unboxing
- •Word parts: No clear prefix or suffix; root likely from Latin "fecundus"
- •Etymology: From Latin "fecundus," meaning fertile or fruitful
- •Historical development: Used since Middle English to describe land, animals, or minds that produce abundantly
- •Modern usage: Used in formal writing to describe fertility or high productivity in nature or creativity
- •Interesting fact: Often used in literature and biology to describe richness of life or ideas
Reflect & Connect
•Can something be fecund in ideas but not in nature? How do these two types of fecundity compare?
•How does the idea of fecundity help us understand creativity or growth in our own lives?
Fill in the blanks
1.The farmer chose the fecund soil because it ___ many crops every season.
2.A fecund mind is one that ___ many new and interesting ideas.
3.Unlike dry land, fecund land is full of ___ and life.
4.The artist’s fecund creativity led to ___ paintings and stories.
5.Fecundity in nature means the ability to ___ offspring or plants.
6.When someone is fecund in their work, they often ___ many results or products.
7.Fecund is different from just "productive" because it often describes ___ growth or creativity.