seeding

seeding — 動詞

1. When a plant or flower seeds, it grows seeds and drops them so that new plants c

1.動詞及物 / 不及物B2
釋義

結籽；結種

植物長出並掉落種子

When a plant or flower seeds, it grows seeds and drops them so that new plants can grow from them.

例句

The sunflowers in Tariro's garden began to seed in late summer.

Tariro 花園裡的向日葵在夏末開始結籽。

intransitive use: plants seed naturally

If you let the lettuce plant seed, volunteers will appear next spring.

如果你讓萵苣結籽，明年春天就會自己長出來。

同義詞
  • go to seed

    more common phrasing for the same process, especially when a plant is past its best

文法句型

seed (intransitive)

seed + direct object (rare, transitive)

用法筆記

Often used in gardening contexts to describe the natural life cycle. When a plant 'goes to seed', it has finished flowering and is now producing seeds.

2. To open up produce such as a melon, pepper, or cucumber and take out its inner s

2.動詞及物B1
釋義

去籽；挖籽

取出水果或蔬菜中的籽

To open up produce such as a melon, pepper, or cucumber and take out its inner seeds before cooking or serving.

例句

Hannah seeded the watermelon before cutting it into small cubes for the fruit salad.

Hannah 先把西瓜去籽，再切成小塊放入水果沙拉。

transitive: seed + fruit

You should seed the jalapeño peppers if you prefer a milder salsa.

如果你想要口味溫和的莎莎醬，應該先把墨西哥辣椒去籽。

同義詞
  • deseed

    less common but sometimes used in recipe writing

文法句型

seed + fruit/vegetable

用法筆記

Common in recipe instructions. Some fruits (watermelon, pomegranate) take more time to seed than others (bell peppers, cucumbers).

常見錯誤

❌I seeded the field' (when you meant removing seeds from fruit).
✅I seeded the watermelon.
💡The same verb seed has a very different meaning with a field (sow) vs. a fruit (remove seeds); context and direct object make the meaning clear.

3. To put seeds into the ground so that plants will grow there.

3.動詞及物B1
釋義

播種

將種子播入土中

To put seeds into the ground so that plants will grow there.

例句

Vivek seeded the empty vegetable patch with carrots and radishes last weekend.

Vivek 上週末在空菜圃裡播了胡蘿蔔和小蘿蔔的種子。

seed + area + with + crop

The farmers seeded the hillside fields with barley just before the rainy season.

農民們在雨季來臨前在山坡田裡播下大麥種子。

同義詞
  • sow

    more common in everyday English for scattering seeds by hand or machine

  • plant

    general term for putting seeds or young plants into the ground

反義詞

文法句型

seed + land/area + with + crop

seed + land/area

用法筆記

In everyday speech, sow or plant is more common than seed as a verb for putting seeds in the ground. Seed is more frequent in agricultural or formal writing.

常見錯誤

❌I seeded the tomatoes' (when you mean planted tomato seeds).
✅I seeded the field with tomatoes.
💡The verb seed takes the land as its object, not the crop itself.

4. To make a feeling, idea, or situation begin to appear and gradually grow.

4.動詞及物B2
釋義

播下；引發

讓某種感受或想法產生並發展

To make a feeling, idea, or situation begin to appear and gradually grow.

例句

The journalist's report seeded doubt about the safety of the new vaccine.

那位記者的報導為新疫苗的安全性播下了懷疑的種子。

figurative: seed + doubt

Elena's encouragement seeded a lasting passion for marine biology in the young student.

Elena 的鼓勵在那位年輕學生心中播下了對海洋生物學的持久熱情。

同義詞
  • plant

    more common; 'plant an idea' is everyday English while 'seed an idea' is rarer and more literary

  • sow

    same agricultural metaphor, slightly more formal; 'sow the seeds of doubt' is a fixed expression

  • spark

    suggests a sudden, immediate reaction rather than gradual growth

反義詞
  • quash

    to stop something from developing

  • stifle

    to prevent something from growing

文法句型

seed + abstract noun (doubt, suspicion, fear, idea, passion)

用法筆記

Frequently used with negative outcomes (doubt, suspicion, distrust) but also with positive ones (passion, curiosity, hope). The metaphor comes from planting a seed that grows slowly.

常見錯誤

❌The news seeded panic immediately.' — seed suggests gradual growth, so it sounds odd with 'immediately'.
✅The news sparked panic immediately.' or 'The news seeded a slow-growing panic.
💡use spark for sudden reactions, seed for gradual ones.

5. To give a player or team a particular rank in a competition, arranged so that th

5.動詞及物B2
釋義

列為種子選手

在比賽中將選手依實力排名

To give a player or team a particular rank in a competition, arranged so that the strongest competitors meet only in later stages of the tournament.

例句

Christopher was seeded fourth in the national squash championships this year.

Christopher 今年在國家壁球錦標賽中被列為第四種子。

passive: be seeded + rank

The defending champion is always seeded at the top of the tournament draw.

衛冕冠軍在比賽抽籤中總是被列為頭號種子。

同義詞
  • rank

    broader term used in any ranking system, not only sports tournaments

文法句型

be seeded + rank + in + tournament/competition

用法筆記

Almost always used in the passive voice. The opposite is 'unseeded' (not given a seed). Past participle 'seeded' as an adjective is also common: 'the top-seeded player'.

常見錯誤

❌The coach seeded the player.' (without a rank).
✅The coach seeded the player third in the tournament.
💡You must state what rank or position the player received.

6. To spread chemical substances into clouds so that the clouds release rain or sno

6.動詞及物C1
釋義

人工降雨

在雲中撒化學物以造雨

To spread chemical substances into clouds so that the clouds release rain or snow.

例句

The government funded a project to seed clouds during the long dry season.

政府資助了一個在漫長旱季進行人工降雨的計畫。

technical: cloud seeding project

Scientists seeded the clouds with silver iodide to bring rain to the drought-stricken region.

科學家在雲層中撒播碘化銀，為遭受乾旱的地區帶來降雨。

seed + clouds + with + chemical

文法句型

seed + clouds + with + chemical

cloud seeding (noun phrase)

用法筆記

Most commonly appears in the compound noun 'cloud seeding'. The verb is used in technical or news reporting about weather modification.

常見錯誤

❌They seeded the clouds to make it rain.' (acceptable in casual speech but imprecise). For a more natural phrasing:
✅They carried out cloud seeding to increase rainfall.
💡The noun phrase 'cloud seeding' is more common than the verb in everyday use.