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Glite Dictionary
to rototill

to rototill

7.4
To break up and turn over soil in a garden or field using a machine
  • verb
  • /ˈroʊtəˌtɪl/
  • US
translation icon : arar
  • (They rototill the land.
  • rototill the garden

Examples

  • Powdered lime was rototilled into the top six inches of soil before the soil was watered and rolled.

    Academic text (1997)

  • He rented a machine to rototill the garden, making it much easier to plant flowers and vegetables.

  • It's gonna rototill your world.

    The Smell of Success (2011)

  • To prepare the new vegetable patch, we need to rototill the soil for better aeration and nutrient distribution.

  • Before planting the tomatoes, she decided to rototill the ground to ensure it was loose and ready.

Synonyms

to rototiller
vsto rototill
  • Specialized
6.6

To break up and mix garden soil using a machine with turning blades

focuses on flipping soil over rather than only mixing it

How Thorough

to rototill
  • US
7.4
to cultivate
38 4.0
to till
11 5.3
to loosen
15 2.8

Surface Forms

rototill infinitive
rototilled past
rototilled past participle
rototilling present participle
rototills third person singular

Morphology

rototill = till (semi-transparent) = roto + till + till

The action is clearly 'till' with a rotary element, but the combining form 'roto-' (rotary) may be unfamiliar to many learners.

Etymology

Rototill combines the prefix roto-, seen in rotate, meaning 'turn', with till, which means 'to dig and prepare soil'. So, to rototill is to use a machine that turns over the ground to get it ready for planting.