cultivate

Verb
Synonyms: cropworkeducateschooltraincivilizecivilisedomesticatenaturalizenaturalisetame

WordNet 3.0

Verb (4)

  1. foster the growth of
  2. prepare for crops“Work the soil”“cultivate the land”Synonyms: cropwork
  3. teach or refine to be discriminative in taste or judgment“Cultivate your musical taste”“Train your tastebuds”“She is well schooled in poetry”Synonyms: educateschooltraincivilizecivilise
  4. adapt (a wild plant or unclaimed land) to the environment“domesticate oats”“tame the soil”Synonyms: domesticatenaturalizenaturalisetame
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Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)

Cultivate \Cul"ti*vate\ (k?l"t?-v?t), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Cultivated (-v?`t?d); p. pr. & vb. n. Cultivating (-v?`-t?ng).] [LL. cultivatus, p. p. of cultivare to cultivate, fr. cultivus cultivated, fr. L. cultus, p. p. of colere to till, cultivate. Cf. Colony.]

1.To bestow attention, care, and labor upon, with a view to valuable returns; to till; to fertilize; as, to cultivate soil. [1913 Webster]

2.To direct special attention to; to devote time and thought to; to foster; to cherish. [1913 Webster]

Leisure . . . to cultivate general literature.— Wordsworth.[1913 Webster]

3.To seek the society of; to court intimacy with. [1913 Webster]

I ever looked on Lord Keppel as one of the greatest and best men of his age; and I loved and cultivated him accordingly.— Burke.[1913 Webster]

4.To improve by labor, care, or study; to impart culture to; to civilize; to refine. [1913 Webster]

To cultivate the wild, licentious savage.— Addison.[1913 Webster]
The mind of man hath need to be prepared for piety and virtue; it must be cultivated to the end.— Tillotson.[1913 Webster]

5.To raise or produce by tillage; to care for while growing; as, to cultivate corn or grass. [1913 Webster]

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