melon

[ mel-uhn ]
See synonyms for melon on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. the fruit of any of various plants of the gourd family, as the muskmelon or watermelon.

  2. medium crimson or deep pink.

  1. the visible upper portion of the head of a surfacing whale or dolphin, including the beak, eyes, and blowhole.

  2. Informal.

    • a large extra dividend, often in the form of stock, to be distributed to stockholders: Profits zoomed so in the last quarter that the corporation cut a nice melon.

    • any windfall of money to be divided among specified participants.

Origin of melon

1
1350–1400; Middle English <Late Latin mēlōn- (stem of mēlō), short for mēlopepō<Greek mēlopépōn apple-shaped melon, equivalent to mêlo(n) apple + pépōnpepo

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use melon in a sentence

  • I wanted to please him, because we were now cracking the melons and scooping out their luscious hearts.

    The Iron Puddler | James J. Davis
  • I thanked Comrade Bannerman for his pamphlets and threw him a few coins to pay for the melons he had given me.

    The Iron Puddler | James J. Davis

British Dictionary definitions for melon

melon

/ (ˈmɛlən) /


noun
  1. any of several varieties of two cucurbitaceous vines, cultivated for their edible fruit: See muskmelon, watermelon

  2. the fruit of any of these plants, which has a hard rind and juicy flesh

  1. cut a melon US and Canadian slang to declare an abnormally high dividend to shareholders

Origin of melon

1
C14: via Old French from Late Latin mēlo, shortened form of mēlopepō, from Greek mēlopepōn, from mēlon apple + pepōn gourd

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012