Agriculture is defined as the cultivation of soil for growing crops.
Source: tatoeba (282302)
Cultivation
/ˌkʌltɪˈveɪʃən/
Synonyms for "cultivation" (223 found)
Ranked by relevance and common usage.
Closest matches (45)
acculturationacquired tasteagrarianismagricultural geologyagricultureagrologyagronomicsagronomyappreciation of excellenceapprenticeshiparchitectureassemblybasic trainingbreakingbreedingbuildingcastingcharmchoicenesscivility
Show 13 more words
civilizationcivilized tastecivilizednesscompositionconditioningconstructioncontour farmingcontour plowingconversioncraftingcraftsmanshipcreationcultivated taste
Adjective(3 words)
agricultural activitybacterial culturebacterial growth
Noun(7 words)
Verb(2 words)
civilize peoplecultivate a garden
Strong matches (67)
Verb(2 words)
cultivating cropsfoster curiosity
Noun(16 words)
cultureculturingcultusdevelopmentdomesticatingdomesticationfarm relatedfarm sector relatedfarmingfarmingsfinishfosteringfostering school belonginggardeninggardening practicegerman verfeinern
Adjective(3 words)
cultured lifedomesticated organismsexquisite taste
Related words (111)
good breedinggood tastegracegracefulnessgracilitygraciositygraciousnessgrain farminggroominggrowinggrowthhandicrafthandiworkharrowingharvestinghoeinghousebreakinghusbandryhydroponicsimprovement
Show 62 more words
in-service trainingintensive farmingladylikenesslistingmachiningmakingmanual trainingmanufacturemanufacturingmilitary trainingmillingminingmixed farmingmoldingnicenessnicetynurturenurturingon-the-job trainingpanacheplowingpolishpracticeprefabricationpreparationprocessingproducingpromotionpruningqualityraisingreadyingrearingrefinementrefiningrehearsalrural economyshapingsharecroppingsloydsmeltingsocializationsophisticationstrip farmingsubsistence farmingsubtletytank farmingtastetastefulnessthinningthremmatologytillagetillingtilthtrainingtruck farmingupbringingvocational educationvocational trainingweedingworkingworkmanship
Noun(25 words)
highly developed cultureincubationjordbrukkweeklearninglemongrassmore domesticatedmore refinednurturenurture school cultureplant careplantingploughingpolishpolish transformowaćpolishesrefinementrefinementsrock garden plantingseed sowing
Verb(2 words)
nurturesplant crops
Adjective(2 words)
polished finishspanish cultura
Choosing the right synonym
- Closest matches in this entry: acculturation, acquired taste, agrarianism, agricultural activity, agricultural geology.
- Sentence evidence is available for cultivation, so synonym choice can be checked against real usage rather than a flat word list.
- Ranking signals come from moby, derived_reverse, opengloss, wordnet, and related lexical sources.
Synonym selection checklist
- Match the part of speech before comparing meanings.
- Check whether the synonym changes intensity, formality, or emotional tone.
- Read the replacement inside the full sentence, not just beside "cultivation".
- Prefer the clearest word over the most unusual word when writing for speed or comprehension.
When not to replace "cultivation"
Keep "cultivation" when the sentence already sounds natural, when a synonym would add unintended emphasis, or when readers need the most familiar wording. A synonym should clarify or sharpen the message, not simply make the sentence look more varied.
If two options seem close, choose the one that best matches the audience and purpose of the sentence.
Replacement workflow
1. Preserve meaning
Choose a synonym only if it keeps the core idea of "cultivation" intact in the sentence you are editing.
2. Tune tone
Check whether the replacement sounds more formal, casual, emotional, technical, or forceful than the original word.
3. Re-read context
Read the full sentence after the swap. Keep the synonym only when the sentence becomes clearer or more precise.
Review note: Synonym lists are ranked with lexical data and reviewed for practical writing value. Use the comparison notes, sentence evidence, and source labels together; a high-ranking synonym can still be wrong when the audience, register, or grammar changes.
Final fit check
After choosing a replacement for "cultivation", read the sentence once for meaning and once for rhythm. The best synonym should feel natural in the full sentence, not only accurate in a word list.
If the synonym makes the sentence slower, vaguer, or more dramatic than intended, keep "cultivation" or choose a simpler alternative from the closest-match group.
Related word relations
OpenGloss and ConceptNet supply richer edges like generalizations, collocations, and derivations.
More general
15 entriesMore specific
6 entriescommunity engagementcrop cultivationpersonal growthrelationship buildingskill developmentsoil cultivation
Collocations
5 entriescharacter cultivationcrop cultivationcultivation practicegarden cultivationsoil cultivation
Inflections
1 entriesDerivations
3 entriesTranslations
38 translations across 27 languages.
Afrikaans
1 entries- kultivasie noun (art or act of cultivating)
Arabic
1 entries- تَهْذِيب noun (art or act of cultivating)
Bengali
2 entries- চাষ noun (art or act of cultivating)
- জেরাত noun (art or act of cultivating)
Bulgarian
2 entries- обработка noun (art or act of cultivating)
- отгле́ждане noun (art or act of cultivating)
Chinese Mandarin
1 entries- 養殖 /养殖 noun (art or act of cultivating)
Dutch
1 entries- teelt noun (art or act of cultivating)
Esperanto
1 entries- kultivado noun (art or act of cultivating)
Finnish
1 entries- viljely noun (art or act of cultivating)
French
1 entries- culture noun (art or act of cultivating)
Galician
1 entries- cultivo noun (art or act of cultivating)
German
2 entries- Bodenbearbeitung noun (art or act of cultivating)
- Kultivierung noun (art or act of cultivating)
Indonesian
2 entries- budidaya noun (art or act of cultivating)
- kultivasi noun (art or act of cultivating)
Irish
1 entries- saothrú noun (art or act of cultivating)
Italian
1 entries- coltura noun (art or act of cultivating)
Japanese
1 entries- 栽培 noun (art or act of cultivating)
Korean
1 entries- 경작 noun (art or act of cultivating)
Latin
1 entries- cultūra noun (art or act of cultivating)
Middle Persian
1 entries- 𐭠𐭡𐭠𐭣𐭠𐭭𐭩𐭤 noun (art or act of cultivating)
Persian
1 entries- کشت noun (art or act of cultivating)
Polish
1 entries- uprawa noun (art or act of cultivating)
Portuguese
2 entries- cultivação noun (art or act of cultivating)
- cultivo noun (art or act of cultivating)
Romanian
3 entries- cultivare noun (art or act of cultivating)
- cultivație noun (art or act of cultivating)
- cultură agricolă noun (art or act of cultivating)
Russian
4 entries- возде́лывание noun (art or act of cultivating)
- выра́щивание noun (art or act of cultivating)
- культиви́рование noun (art or act of cultivating)
- обрабо́тка noun (art or act of cultivating)
Santali
1 entries- ᱚᱵᱚᱫ noun (art or act of cultivating)
Scottish Gaelic
1 entries- àiteach noun (art or act of cultivating)
Spanish
2 entries- cultivación noun (art or act of cultivating)
- cultivo noun (art or act of cultivating)
Telugu
1 entries- వ్యవసాయము noun (art or act of cultivating)
Sample sentences
15 total sentences available.
There is no piety in the world which is not the result of cultivation, and which cannot be increased by the degree of care and attention bestowed upon it.
Source: tatoeba (414423)
Organic cultivation is a method of growing plants (grains, vegetables, fruit, etc.) without using agricultural chemicals.
Source: tatoeba (506783)
As Yan Yuan pointed out, "proper moral cultivation could begin from any point on the moral map, not just the mean position".
Source: tatoeba (1816155)
Showing 4 of 15 available sentences.
Common questions
What are the closest synonyms for "cultivation"?
Closest matches include acculturation, acquired taste, agrarianism, agricultural activity, agricultural geology.
How should I check whether a synonym fits "cultivation"?
Compare the replacement against real sentence context. This entry includes sample sentences so you can check tone, grammar, and meaning before swapping words.