prolific
Americanadjective
-
producing offspring, young, fruit, etc., abundantly; highly fruitful.
a prolific pear tree.
- Antonyms:
- barren
-
producing in large quantities or with great frequency; highly productive.
a prolific writer.
-
profusely productive or fruitful (often followed by in orof ).
a bequest prolific of litigations.
-
characterized by abundant production.
a prolific year for tomatoes.
adjective
-
producing fruit, offspring, etc, in abundance
-
producing constant or successful results
-
rich or fruitful
Related Words
See productive.
Other Word Forms
- nonprolific adjective
- nonprolificacy noun
- nonprolifically adverb
- nonprolificness noun
- overprolific adjective
- overprolifically adverb
- overprolificness noun
- prolificacy noun
- prolifically adverb
- prolificity noun
- prolificness noun
- unprolific adjective
- unprolifically adverb
- unprolificness noun
Etymology
Origin of prolific
First recorded in 1640–50, prolific is from the Medieval Latin word prōlificus “fertile.” See prolicide, -fic
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The Peruvian writer Mario Vargas Llosa, who died in 2025, was a prolific storyteller.
A prolific waste criminal has been ordered to pay £1.2m in compensation for illegally dumping more than 4,000 tonnes of waste across England.
From BBC
For all the play’s prolific acclaim, “Amadeus” has had a conspicuous second act problem.
From Los Angeles Times
Robert Duvall, a prolific, Oscar-winning actor who shunned glitz and won praise as one of his generation's greatest and most versatile artists, has died at age 95.
From Barron's
Robert Duvall was a distinguished and prolific screen actor who lent a brooding intensity and grizzled authority to seven decades of American film-making.
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
