1 : a small object produced by a plant from which a new plant can grow [count] ▪ a packet of sunflower seeds ▪ He planted/sowed the seeds three inches apart. ▪ (US) apple/orange seeds [=(Brit) pips] [noncount] ▪ She raked the grass seed into the soil. ▪ She grows her plants from seed. [=by planting seeds rather than by some other method] — see color picture 2 [count] : the beginning of something which continues to develop or grow
▪ Her comment planted/sowed a seed of doubt in his mind. [=caused him to begin to have doubts] ▪ The government's policies planted/sowed the seeds of war/destruction. [=created a situation that led to war/destruction] 3 [count] : a player or team that is ranked as one of the best in a competition (such as a tennis tournament) in order to be sure that the best players or teams do not play against each other in the early part of the competition
▪ The top seed won the tournament. ▪ Our team is the number one seed. ▪ She is ranked as the third seed. 4 [noncount] a literary : all the children, grandchildren, etc., of a particular man
▪ the seed of Abraham
b old-fashioned + humorous : a man's semen
▪ a man spreading his seed [=fathering many children]