noun
tiller
TIH-luh
noun
1
A handle attached to a boat's rudder, used to steer the boat.
"She gripped the tiller tightly as the wind picked up."
2
A person who tills, or cultivates, land.
"The tillers worked from dawn until dusk during harvest season."
3
A new shoot growing from the base of a plant.
"The wheat plant produced several tillers before flowering."
How to Use Tiller
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishThe steering handle on a small boat, or someone/something that cultivates land.
Common pairings
grip the tiller
push the tiller
Word Forms
tillered past tense, tillers plural, tillers plural, tillers plural, Tillers plural, tillers singular
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Etymology
From Middle English tilier, built from "till" (to cultivate) plus "-er."