infertile
/ɪnˈfəːtʌɪl
/adjective
1(Of a person, animal, or plant) unable to reproduce itself; unable to have young: infertile couples are offered specialist advice...
- On the other hand, clinical cytogenetic studies of malformed and infertile dogs have been rather poorly developed.
- ‘Twice we tried to mate her,’ says Pyarejan, who fears his elephant is infertile.
- The sperm of the altered mice were less vigorous than normal, and the mice were completely infertile.
Synonyms
sterile, barren;
childless;
Medicine infecund
1.1(Of land) unable to sustain crops or vegetation: barren and infertile soils...
- Most Haitians live in rural areas as sharecroppers working infertile land.
- However, many people find it difficult to sustain their families on small plots of infertile land.
- These were farms so small or with such infertile land as to be unable to support a family at a minimum standard of living.
Synonyms
barren, non-fertile, unfruitful, unproductive, non-productive, uncultivatable, lifeless, sterile, impoverished, arid
rare unfructuous
Origin
Late 16th century: from French, or from late Latin infertilis, from in- 'not' + fertilis (see fertile).
- multiciliated
- multicipital
- multicircuit
- multicistronic
- multi-city
- multi-class
- multi-coat
- multicoat
- multi-coated
- multi-coating
- multi-coil
- multicollinearity
- multicolored
- multicolour
- multicoloured
- multicolouredness
- multi-column
- multicomponent
- multicomponential
- multiconductor
- multiconsonantal
- multicopter
- multicopy
- multicopying
- multicore