sow the seeds of something Definition

seed
noun seeds, seed

1. bot.
In flowering and cone-bearing plants: the highly resistant structure that develops from the ovule after fertilization, and is capable of developing into a new plant.
2. A small hard fruit or part in a fruit; a pip.
3. A source or origin.

Example: the seeds of the plan
Thesaurus: source, origin, root, basis, foundation.
4. literary
Offspring; descendants.
5. literary
Semen.
6. sport.
A seeded player.
Example: He is number one seed
7. chem.
A single crystal introduced to a concentrated solution to induce crystallization.

verb seeded, seeding

intr
1. Said of a plant: to produce seeds.
2. To sow or plant (seeds).
3. To remove seeds from (eg a fruit).
4. chem.
To use a single crystal to induce the formation of more crystals from (a concentrated solution).
5. To scatter particles of some substance into (a cloud) in order to induce rainfall, disperse a storm or freezing fog, etc.
6. sport.
To rank (a player in a tournament) according to their likelihood of winning.
Example: has been seeded number three for Wimbledon
7. sport.
To arrange (a tournament) so that high-ranking players only meet each other in the later stages of the contest.

Derivative: seeded

Having the seeds removed.

Bearing or having seeds.

Sown.

Said of a tournament player: who has been seeded.

Derivative: seedless
adj

Idiom: go to seed (run to seed)

Said of a plant: to stop flowering prior to the development of seed.

colloq
To allow oneself to become unkempt or unhealthy through lack of care.

Idiom: sow the seeds of something

To initiate it.

Etymology: Anglo-Saxon sæd.

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sow¹
verb, tr & intr sowed, sown, sowed, sowing

1. To scatter or place (plant seeds, a crop, etc) on or in the earth, in a plant pot, etc.

Thesaurus: seed, plant, inseminate, propagate, scatter, strew.
2. To plant (a piece of land) with seeds, a crop, etc.

Example: sowed the upper field with barley
3. To introduce or arouse.

Example: sowed the seeds of doubt in his mind

Derivative: sower
noun

Idiom: sow one's wild oats

To indulge in a dissipated lifestyle, often having numerous sexual partners, especially for a relatively short period of time in one's youth.

Idiom: sow the seeds of something

See under seed.

Etymology: Anglo-Saxon sawan.