Definition
To foster is to create the conditions in which something can grow — not to make it directly, but to feed, shelter, and encourage it until it can thrive. Governments foster innovation, teachers foster curiosity, good soil fosters growth. The word also names the care of a child who is not one's own, and that sense colors the rest: fostering is patient, nurturing work that helps a latent thing develop. It does the opposite of suppress, which starves what foster would feed.
Examples
- Small grants are designed to foster innovation among first-time founders.
- A calm classroom can foster the confidence that shy students need.
- Open data fosters collaboration and helps facilitate research across borders.
Collocations
foster innovation·foster a sense of·foster cooperation·foster growth
Synonyms
nurture·cultivate·encourage·promote·facilitate
Antonyms
suppress·stifle·hinder
Word family
fostering (noun)·foster (adjective, as in foster care)
In TOEFL & IELTS
An IELTS Writing favorite: 'foster cooperation/creativity/independence' is exactly the kind of abstract collocation Task 2 rewards. TOEFL passages use it for environments that 'foster growth' — economic, ecological, or developmental. Note the second meaning (foster care / a foster family). It pairs with abstract nouns, where 'facilitate' pairs with processes — learn the distinction.