fallow
part of speech
adjective (fallow); noun (fallow, uncountable)
meaning for a pupil
1) Fallow land is a field that is ploughed but left without crops for a season so the soil can rest and get healthy again. tree →
2) A fallow time is a quiet period when nothing much is happening or being produced. tree →
3) A fallow deer is a smallish deer, light brown with white spots in summer. tree →
sense in the lessons
In the Tanakh and Jewish tradition: Land left unplanted in the seventh year. The prophets use "break up your fallow ground" as a picture of making your heart ready to turn back to God. Interpretation: This is the Sabbatical year (shemitah), when the land rests and the poor may eat what grows by itself. Tradition reads the prophets' words as a call to repent and soften the heart before sowing good deeds. In the primary lessons: In history and farming lessons it explains crop rotation, where fields take turns to rest. In stories it describes empty fields or quiet times. Phrases: «lie fallow», «leave a field fallow», «a fallow period», «fallow deer».
examples
- but the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of thy people may eat; and what they leave the beast of the field shall eat. (Torah EXO.23.11, JPS 1917) tree →
- For thus saith the LORD to the men of Judah and to Jerusalem: Break up for you a fallow ground, and sow not among thorns. (Prophets JER.4.3, JPS 1917) tree →
- Sow to yourselves according to righteousness, reap according to mercy, break up your fallow ground; for it is time to seek the LORD, till He come and cause righteousness to rain upon you. (Prophets HOS.10.12, JPS 1917) tree →
- The farmer left the field fallow this year. tree →
- In the Middle Ages one field in three lay fallow. tree →
- Letting land lie fallow helps the soil recover. tree →
- The team had a fallow season and won nothing. tree →
- We saw fallow deer in the park. tree →
- Fallow deer have white spots on their backs. tree →
- My art ideas went through a fallow patch, then came back. tree →
- Weeds grew in the fallow field. tree →
note
Usually an adjective after «lie», «leave» or «be». Fallow deer is a fixed name; the plural is also «deer». Do not confuse with «follow» or «hollow».
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «fallow» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.