as in dormant
not being in a state of use, activity, or employment
the coal mine has been lying fallow since the drop in prices made it unprofitable
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of fallow
Carrie Battan, Vulture, 22 Sep. 2025
Of course, this fallow year came during the ‘golden generation’ period.
—Michael Cox, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2025
Los Angeles Times, 20 Feb. 2023
Congress recently allocated $4 billion in drought funding that can be used to pay farmers to fallow their land and not use their water.
—Ben Tracy, Andy Bast, CBS News, 31 Jan. 2023
See All Example Sentences for fallow
Adjective
But the ’70s were fallow; observers at the time declared painting was dead.
—Verb
Compromising probably would require money — perhaps tax money — to pay farmers to fallow their land and governments to build new canals and repair old ones.
—Recent Examples of Synonyms for fallow
Adjective
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Forsythia Bursting forth in sprays of yellow blooms while everything else is still brown and dormant, forsythia provides a splash of color when the daffodils are starting to bloom.—
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Next up, in April crews are expected to begin transforming a dormant strip of Church Street, once the city’s party hub, into a festival street designed for pedestrians and hosting events.—
Verb
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Burrow, who spoke with media after the Bengals lost 18-20 to the Cleveland Browns, seemed bothered by his 'do from the start, sitting down at the mic and instantly raking his lengthy bangs back with his hands.—
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As for the face touch, when he was raked across the face by New Orleans’ Jordan Poole, on a play ruled a transition take foul, Larsson smiled afterward.—
Adjective
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Those lingering flavors can transfer to future meals stored in the same container, which is less than ideal if yesterday's chili gives today's fruit salad an off-flavor.—
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James has had the top NBA salary only once (2016-17) during his 23-year career, but his off-court earnings have exceeded his team salary every year since he was drafted first overall in 2003 by the Cleveland Cavaliers.—
Verb
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Then a tall, solemn Mexican appeared, hoe in hand.—
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The wineries of Oregon’s northern Willamette Valley have long hoed their own path.—
Adjective
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The Long-Term Care Imperative, a partnership of Care Providers of Minnesota and Leading Age Minnesota representing short-term care, assisted living, memory care and skilled nursing homes, notes there are some 17,000 caregiver positions vacant right now.—
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The new owner plans to refresh the existing retail, lease up vacant space and add multifamily housing, according to a news release.—
Verb
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Per the Haslet city code, council members are entitled to a minimum of one item listed on each council meeting agenda, which the mayor is in charge of putting together.—
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On Ticketmaster, playoff tickets were listed ranging from almost $500 to over $2,200.—
Adjective
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Dumas has worked for Valero for four years but just moved to the Benicia location from Arizona a year ago, just a few months before the energy company announced a possible plan to cease or idle operations.—
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One such power line, the century-old Mesa-Sylmar, owned by SoCal Edison, had been idle for some fifty years.—
Verb
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Before the big race, the track was harrowed, bringing it to a better and drier racing surface.—
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The research fellow who met me, Birte, was in her forties, and appeared as if she had been harrowed by her work.—
Cite this Entry
“Fallow.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fallow. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.
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