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# soil

noun (soil — uncountable; soils — kinds of soil); verb (soil, soils, soiled — to make dirty)

«soil» in the English dictionary: everyday and in Jewish tradition — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. The top layer of the ground in which plants grow, made of tiny bits of rock, dead plants and animals, water and air. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/soil/#m1)
2. Land or country: «on British soil». [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/soil/#m2)
3. Verb: to make something dirty (formal). [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/soil/#m3)

### In the lessons

In science: soil forms slowly from broken rock and rotting plants; worms and tiny living things make it rich; kinds: sandy, clay, loamy; plants take water and minerals from soil through roots; compost makes soil better. In safety: wash hands after gardening — soil can have germs. Phrases: rich soil, sandy soil, clay soil, soil and water, topsoil, garden soil, soil erosion.

### Examples

- Plants grow in soil. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/soil/#x1)
- Earthworms make the soil healthy. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/soil/#x2)
- Sandy soil lets water drain quickly. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/soil/#x3)
- Clay soil is sticky when it's wet. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/soil/#x4)
- Wash your hands after touching soil. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/soil/#x5)
- We put compost in the soil to help the vegetables. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/soil/#x6)
- Tree roots hold the soil in place. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/soil/#x7)
- The soil was dry because it hadn't rained. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/soil/#x8)
- He looked, and saw peasants tilling the soil. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/soil/#x9)

### Note

Mostly uncountable: «some soil». Similar words: dirt (US, everyday), earth, ground. Soil is not just dirt: it is full of life. Soil takes hundreds of years to form, so protecting it matters.

## In Jewish tradition

It is the good ground where plants grow, and it stands for the land God gave to Israel.

**Interpretation.** Ezekiel's vine pictures Israel planted in a good land by God. Tradition reads it as a warning that blessing demands loyalty.

### Examples

- I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a leafy tree in its native soil. (Writings PSA.37.35, JPS 1917) [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/S/soil/#x1)
- He took also of the seed of the land, and planted it in a fruitful soil; he placed it beside many waters, he set it as a slip. (Prophets EZK.17.5, JPS 1917) [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/S/soil/#x2)
- It was planted in a good soil by many waters, that it might bring forth branches, and that it might bear fruit, that it might be a stately vine. (Prophets EZK.17.8, JPS 1917) [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/S/soil/#x3)

### Note

Mostly uncountable: «some soil». Similar words: dirt (US, everyday), earth, ground. Soil is not just dirt: it is full of life. Soil takes hundreds of years to form, so protecting it matters.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «soil» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/soil/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«soil» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/soil.html) on Mova free.
- [Trees and pragmatics of «soil» in the Judaism dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/S/soil/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«soil» in the Judaism dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/judaism/w/soil.html) on Mova free.