Word
cultivate
Meanings
to grow plants or crops by working the land
to develop a skill, quality, habit, or relationship through effort over time
to try to build a friendly relationship with someone, often for a purpose
Definition
To cultivate something is to develop it carefully over time, or to grow plants or crops.
To cultivate means to develop something deliberately and steadily, such as a skill, habit, relationship, or interest. It can also mean to prepare and use land to grow crops, or to grow plants. In both cases, the idea is long-term care and improvement through consistent effort.
Examples
- I’m trying to cultivate a more patient response to criticism rather than reacting defensively.
- She cultivated strong partnerships across departments by following up consistently and listening carefully.
- They cultivated the land for generations, adapting their methods as the climate became less predictable.
- The museum cultivates new audiences by hosting workshops that invite people to engage with the collection.
- You can cultivate trust in your team by being transparent about decisions, especially when the news is difficult.
Common mistake
Learners often confuse cultivate with culture; cultivate is a verb meaning develop or grow, while culture is usually a noun.
More at C1 level
- ubiquitous Present, appearing, or found everywhere at the same time.
- xenophobia Xenophobia is a strong dislike or fear of people from other countries or cultures.
- genocide Genocide is the deliberate killing of a large number of people from a particular group in order to …
- conundrum A conundrum is a confusing and difficult problem to solve.
- pretentious Trying to seem more important, intelligent, or cultured than you really are.
More verbs
- analyze To examine something carefully in order to understand it or explain it.
- scrutinize To scrutinize something is to examine it very carefully and in detail.
- affect To affect something is to influence it or cause it to change.
- allude To allude means to mention or suggest something indirectly without saying it clearly.
- elude To elude someone or something is to avoid being caught, understood, or remembered.