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apples and pears

British  

plural noun

  1. Often shortened to: applesslang:rhyming stairs

"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

Example Sentences

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Broadly painted still lifes from the 1930s, with apples and pears transformed into flat, declarative shapes, have the physical presence of “The Lace Shawl,” with a very different mood and affect.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 3, 2026

Farmers say they are losing crops to floods while less frost hurts the growth of trees like apples and pears.

From BBC • Mar. 1, 2024

They left in the early afternoon from Dulles International Airport with a load of bamboo, apples and pears to munch on during the 19-hour, 9,000 mile flight.

From Reuters • Nov. 8, 2023

After all, apples and pears are boom crops here, which find their way into the Aplets & Cotlets Candy Kitchen & Country Store in Cashmere, just off US-2 East.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 28, 2023

She fanned fast for a minute, then sank down in Granny’s big rocker, the high-back one with apples and pears carved on it.

From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns