Definition
开垦 (kāi kěn) specifically means to clear wild or uncultivated land to make it suitable for farming — the initial act of bringing land under cultivation. This contrasts with 开拓/开辟, which are broader ('open up' new paths/frontiers, often figurative), and with 耕/耕耘/耕地, which refer to plowing or tilling land that is already arable.
verb
to clear (wild land) for cultivationto reclaim (wasteland)
Easily confused
- 开场kāi chǎnglook-aliketo begin, to start (a performance, event, etc.)
Examples
- 开垦。Nóngmínmen zài shānqū kāi kěn le yí piàn tītián.The farmers cleared a terraced field in the mountain area.
- 开垦，。Jīngguò jǐ nián de kāi kěn, zhè piàn huāngmò biàn chéng le liángtián.After several years of reclamation, this desert turned into fertile farmland.
- 开垦。Zhèngfǔ gǔlì rénmen kāi kěn huāngdì zhòngzhí liángshi.The government encourages people to reclaim wasteland for grain cultivation.
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