yield

YEELD /jiːld/
nounverbB2SATACTIELTS
generaltechnicalagricultural

The amount of an agricultural or industrial product produced.

In agriculture, it is often measured as 'output per unit of land' (e.g., bushels per acre).

The story behind the word. From the Old English 'gieldan', meaning 'to pay' or 'to give back'. It reflects the idea that the land is 'paying' the farmer for their hard work.

Word relationships

  • output: Output is a general term for anything produced; yield is specifically the amount 'harvested' or 'returned' from an investment or land.

Commonly confused with

  • profit: Yield is the physical amount produced; profit is the money made after expenses.

Word family

  • yielding (adjective): Producing much; productive.

Collocations

  • crop yield
  • high yield
  • yield per acre

Example sentences

  • "Better irrigation techniques have significantly increased the crop yield this year." Farming statistics.
  • "The investment offers a high annual yield of seven percent." Financial context.

Memory hook

The 'FIELD' gives a 'YIELD'. Yield is what the earth gives back.

When not to use

In a supply chain context, don't confuse the noun 'yield' with the verb 'yield' meaning to give way to traffic.

Fun facts

  • Modern 'high-yield' varieties of wheat and rice were the foundation of the Green Revolution, which saved over a billion people from starvation.

Related words

perishable, aggregation

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