fertilizer

American  

[fur-tl-ahy-zer] / ˈfɜr tlˌaɪ zər /

noun

1. any substance used to fertilize the soil, especially a commercial or chemical manure.

2. a person, insect, etc., that fertilizes an animal or plant.

   Bees are fertilizers of flowers.

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fertilizer British  

/ ˈfɜːtɪˌlaɪzə /

noun

1. any substance, such as manure or a mixture of nitrates, added to soil or water to increase its productivity

2. an object or organism such as an insect that fertilizes an animal or plant

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fertilizer Scientific  

/ fûr′tl-ī′zər /

1. Any of a large number of natural and synthetic materials, including manure and compounds containing nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, spread on or worked into soil to increase its capacity to support plant growth. Synthetic fertilizers can greatly increase the productivity of soil but have high energy costs, since fossil fuels are required as a source of hydrogen, which is necessary to fix nitrogen in ammonia.

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Etymology

Origin of fertilizer

First recorded in 1655–65; fertilize + -er ¹

Explanation

Material you add to a garden to increase the nutrients in the soil and help plants grow is called fertilizer. If your rosebushes are looking a little sad, you might want to try using fertilizer. To fertilize is to make something fertile, or to encourage it to grow or reproduce. These words, along with fertilizer, come from the Latin fertilis, "bearing in abundance, fruitful, or productive." The most common kind of organic fertilizer is animal manure or peat, and other fertilizers are made of specific nutrients like nitrogen or potassium. Fertilizers are usually solid, though they come in liquid form as well.

Example Sentences

That is aimed at causing enough economic damage to Iran that it agrees to reopen the vital waterway, which carries about a fifth of the world’s oil and other valuable commodities like fertilizer.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026

Many economists had already assumed the Strait of Hormuz, through which petroleum products and other commodities such as fertilizer transit from the Persian Gulf, would eventually reopen and oil prices would fall.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 12, 2026

They frequently appear in wastewater and can end up in biosolid fertilizer, also called sewage sludge, which is produced during wastewater treatment.

From Science Daily • Apr. 11, 2026

Some 20% of the world’s oil and up to one-third of its fertilizer supply, which normally passes through the Strait of Hormuz, has been at a near stand-still for more than a month.

From Barron's • Apr. 10, 2026

Then farmers use artificial fertilizer, which at best is expensive, and at worst may inflict longterm damage on the soil.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

Related Words

• manure