rs, and _horticulture_, the
_culture_ of fruits, flowers, or vegetables, are all departments of
_agriculture_, but not strictly nor ordinarily of _farming_; _farming_
is itself one department of _agriculture_. _Husbandry_ is a general word
for any form of practical _agriculture_, but is now chiefly poetical.
_Tillage_ refers directly to the work bestowed upon the land, as
plowing, manuring, etc.; _cultivation_ refers especially to the
processes that bring forward the crop; we speak of the _tillage_ of the
soil, the _cultivation_ of corn; we also speak of land as in a state of
_cultivation_, under _cultivation_, etc. _Culture_ is now applied to the
careful development of any product to a state of perfection, especially
by care through successive generations; the choice varieties of the
strawberry have been produced by wise and patient _culture_; a good crop
in any year is the result of good _cultivation_.

* * * * *

AIM.

Synonyms:

aspiration, endeavor, intention, tendency.
design, goal, mark,
determination, inclination, object,
end, intent, purpose,

The _aim_ is the direction in which one shoots, or sometimes that which
is aimed at. The _mark_ is that at which one shoots; the _goal_, that
toward which one runs. All alike indicate the direction of _endeavor_.
The _end_ is the point at which one expects or hopes to close his
labors; the _object_, that which he would grasp as the reward of his
labors. _Aspiration_, _design_, _endeavor_, _purpose_, referring to the
mental acts by which the _aim_ is attained, are often used as
interchangeable with _aim_. _Aspiration_ applies to what are viewed as
noble _aims_; _endeavor_, _design_, _intention_, _purpose_,
indifferently to the best or worst. _Aspiration_ has less of decision
than the other terms; one may aspire to an _object_, and yet lack the
fixedness of _purpose_ by which alone it can be attained. _Purpose_ is
stronger than _intention_. _Design_ especially denotes the adaptation
of means to an end; _endeavor_ refers to the exertions by which it is to
be attained. One whose _aims_ are worthy, whose _aspirations_ are high,
whose _designs_ are wise, and whose _purposes_ are steadfast, may hope
to reach the _goal_ of his ambition, and will surely win some _object_
worthy of a life's _endeavor_. Compare AMBITION; DESIGN.

Antonyms:

aimlessness, heedlessness, negligence, purpose