Cultivating

1 definition found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [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.
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     2. To direct special attention to; to devote time and thought
        to; to foster; to cherish.
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              Leisure . . . to cultivate general literature.
                                                    --Wordsworth.
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     3. To seek the society of; to court intimacy with.
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              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.
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     4. To improve by labor, care, or study; to impart culture to;
        to civilize; to refine.
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              To cultivate the wild, licentious savage. --Addison.
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              The mind of man hath need to be prepared for piety
              and virtue; it must be cultivated to the end.
                                                    --Tillotson.
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     5. To raise or produce by tillage; to care for while growing;
        as, to cultivate corn or grass.
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