# farmer

/ˈfɑɹmɝ/ (US) · /fˈɑːmɐ/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/farmer
Updated: 2026-08-15

## Senses

### 1. agricultural worker

noun · CEFR A1

a person who owns or works on a farm, usually growing food or looking after animals.

For teachers: an individual who operates or manages a farm, typically engaged in agriculture or animal husbandry.

- The farmer woke up at dawn to feed the cows and check the wheat fields.
- Local farmers are increasingly adopting sustainable irrigation techniques to mitigate the impact of prolonged seasonal droughts on their crop yields.

### 2. non-scholarship holder

noun · CEFR C1 · Dialect · Slang

a regular student or worker who does not have a special, high-level scholarship.

For teachers: a person who did not receive a prestigious government or corporate scholarship; used to distinguish regular employees from 'scholars'.

- In his company, he felt like a farmer because he wasn't on the fast-track scholarship programme.
- The colloquial distinction between 'scholars' and 'farmers' in the civil service highlights deep-seated perceptions of meritocracy and social mobility.

Teaching tip: This sense is specific to Singaporean English (Singlish) and should be used with caution in other English-speaking regions.

### 3. tax collector

noun · CEFR C2 · Archaic · Formal · Technical

a person in the past who paid for the right to collect taxes for the government.

For teachers: a person who pays a fixed sum for the privilege of collecting and retaining taxes or other public revenues.

- The king appointed a farmer to collect the customs duties at the busy port.
- The historical practice of tax farming often led to corruption, as the farmer sought to extract more from the populace than was legally required.

## Examples

- The farmer grows organic vegetables for the local market.
- After the heavy rains, the farmer checked the fields to see if the young corn plants were damaged.
- Modern farmers must balance traditional agricultural knowledge with complex data analysis to manage soil health and maximize crop yields in a changing climate.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.