noun
rice paddy plowing; tilling a rice field
Agricultural term for the first plowing of a rice paddy before planting. Often done in spring. Related to 田打ち (たうち).
See also: 田打ち (たうち)
春になると、農家は田起こしを始める。
When spring comes, farmers begin plowing the rice paddies.
Synonym; both refer to plowing a rice field, but 田起こし emphasizes the initial turning of the soil.
Compound of 田 (ta, 'rice paddy') and 起こし (okoshi, 'raising, turning up'), from the verb 起こす (okosu, 'to raise, to turn up soil').