fruitful
gb/fɹˈutfəl/ us/fɹˈutfəl/
B1
English
~ 7400
Senses
0 senses
adjective
B2
property
1
producing good or useful results
Giving good results, such as new ideas, answers, or progress.
Usage pattern:
a fruitful [activity/meeting/discussion]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes think 'fruitful' can only talk about real fruit. In modern English it is more often used for actions, talks, or work that give good results. Learners also confuse 'fruitful' and 'fruitless'; remember that '-less' usually means 'without', so 'fruitless' means 'without results'.
Synonyms
productive (Emphasizes efficient output or results, often in work or study; very close in meaning and register.)
|
rewarding (Focuses more on the personal satisfaction or pleasure from the results, not just usefulness.)
Antonyms
fruitless (Describes actions or efforts that do not achieve the desired results.)
|
unproductive (Describes work or activity that fails to create useful results or outcomes.)
Collocations
fruitful discussion
|fruitful cooperation
|fruitful collaboration
|prove fruitful
|fruitful research
|fruitful relationship
Themes
work
|communication
|education
|business
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- The meeting was very fruitful and we left with a clear plan.
- Their partnership has been fruitful for both companies.
- After several weeks of fruitful research, the team finally made a breakthrough.
- We hope this conference will lead to fruitful international cooperation.
- The extra practice proved fruitful when she passed the exam easily.
Learner examples
- The talk with my boss was fruitful, and we solved the problem.
- It was a fruitful year for our small business.
- Their long, hard work was finally fruitful.
- The course was fruitful; I learned many new skills.
- Our online class led to many fruitful ideas.
adjective
B1
property
2
producing a lot of fruit
Producing a lot of fruit, usually said about a plant or a time of year.
Usage pattern:
a fruitful [tree/plant/season/harvest]
Common mistake:
Learners may not realize that this literal sense is less common in everyday conversation than the metaphorical 'useful results' sense. Be careful to use this meaning mainly with plants, trees, and harvests.
Synonyms
productive (In agriculture, often means giving a lot of crops, not only fruit.)
Antonyms
barren (Describes land or plants that are not able to produce fruit or crops.)
Collocations
fruitful tree
|fruitful plant
|fruitful season
|fruitful harvest
|fruitful orchard
Themes
nature
|food
|food_drink
Examples
- Last year was especially fruitful for the apple trees.
- With enough rain and sun, the orchard became very fruitful.
- They planted a new variety of grapevine that is extremely fruitful.
- The farmers are hoping for a fruitful harvest this autumn.
Learner examples
- The lemon tree in our garden is very fruitful.
- This year the mango trees were more fruitful than last year.
- We expect a fruitful harvest after the heavy rains.
- The farmer wants to grow more fruitful plants.
- The garden was small but very fruitful.
adjective
formal
C1
property
3
producing many new ideas or things
Giving many new ideas, works, or results, especially in thinking, art, or science.
Usage pattern:
a fruitful [period/source/imagination/field]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes use 'fruitful' only to mean 'successful'. In formal writing, it can also mean producing many new things, especially ideas or works. In this sense, it is closer to 'prolific' or 'creative' than to simply 'successful'.
Synonyms
prolific (Emphasizes producing many works or results, especially in art, writing, or research; often slightly more formal.)
Antonyms
sterile (In this context, describes ideas or work that do not lead to new creations or developments.)
Collocations
fruitful imagination
|fruitful period
|fruitful source
|fruitful field of study
|fruitful line of enquiry
Themes
creativity
|culture
|science
|work
|arts_entertainment
|education
Examples
- The 1990s were a particularly fruitful period for her writing.
- His research opened up a fruitful new field of study.
- The novel comes from a very fruitful imagination.
- This question has been a fruitful source of debate among scholars.
Learner examples
- It was a fruitful period in her career, and she wrote many books.
- The project became a fruitful source of new ideas.
- His fruitful imagination helped the team find many creative solutions.
- The new method started a fruitful line of research.
Grammar
Dictionary form
fruitful
IPA
GB/fɹˈutfəl/
US/fɹˈutfəl/
Syllables & stress
fruit - ful (2 syllables)
Stress on 1st syllable (fruit)
Word forms
Adjective
- Base: fruitful
Word family
Expressions
fruitful discussion
1/fɹˈutfəl dɪskˈʌʃən/
fixed phrase
discussion producing useful results
A talk between people that gives good ideas, answers, or plans.
Examples
- We had a fruitful discussion and agreed on the next steps.
- The workshop led to a very fruitful discussion about future projects.
fruitful ground for
1/fɹˈutfəl ɡɹˈaʊnd fɚ/
fixed phrase
formal
situation likely to produce results
A situation or place where something, such as ideas or problems, can grow or develop easily.
Examples
- Rapid social change can be fruitful ground for new businesses.
- The internet has become fruitful ground for misinformation.
prove fruitful
1/pɹˈuv fɹˈutfəl/
fixed phrase
turn out to have good results
To finally show, after some time, that something gives good or useful results.
Examples
- Their investment in new technology proved fruitful after just two years.
- The extra training proved fruitful when the team won the championship.