What does sower mean?
A sower is someone who plants or scatters seed, especially a person whose work is agricultural. The word can also refer to a machine designed to sow seeds in fields. In ordinary modern speech, “sower” often carries a traditional or figurative tone, evoking the farmer, gardener, or laborer who patiently puts seeds into the ground and trusts that a harvest will follow. It can therefore be used metaphorically of teachers, writers, or others who distribute ideas and help them take root. Expressions such as “the sower and the reaper” emphasize the connected stages of planting and harvesting. Although the literal agricultural meaning remains its principal use, the word has a long literary and religious history, particularly in descriptions of biblical parables and agricultural life.
nounA person who sows seed, especially as a occupation or agricultural role. By extension, a sower is a machine or implement designed for planting seeds.
- A person who sows or plants seed, especially as an occupation or role.
- A machine or agricultural implement that plants seed in the soil.
"The sower carefully distributed the seed across the freshly prepared field."
"As a child, she learned that patience is the mark of a careful sower."
"The farm's mechanical sower can plant several rows in a single pass."
The plural is formed by adding -s to the noun.
"Several experienced sowers prepared the fields for planting."
The sower is one of the central figures in the biblical parable of the sower, where the image of scattering seed became a lasting symbol of teaching and faith.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does sower come from?
“Sower” comes from the verb “sow,” which derives from Old English “sāwian,” meaning to plant or scatter seed. The underlying English word is Germanic in origin and is related cognately to words in other Germanic languages with meanings associated with seed or sowing. The suffix “-er” forms the agent noun, so “sower” literally means “one who sows.”
How sower is actually used
The word is straightforward and often literary or traditional in reference to a person. In modern agricultural contexts, “seed drill” or “planter” may be more precise for particular machines. The expression “the sower and the reaper” contrasts planting with harvesting.
Easily confused with sower
“Sower” names a person or machine that plants seed, whereas “sower's seed” refers to the seed being planted.