cultivate
KUL-tuh-vaytverbMeaning to develop something by steady care and effort
Memory hook agri-CULT-ure: till, plant, tend. Year after year, Omar tills, plants and weeds his garden until it blooms. In the same way, you can cultivate a skill with steady care.
Rosa cultivated a love of poetry by reading one poem every night.
In context Over many years the shopkeeper cultivated loyal customers, remembering their names, their children’s birthdays and how they liked their coffee.
Similar develop, grow, tend, foster
Opposite neglect, abandon
From Medieval Latin cultivare, from Latin colere, “to till the soil, tend,” the same root as agriculture and culture.