apricot
[ ap-ri-kot, ey-pri- ]
/ ˈæp rɪˌkɒt, ˈeɪ prɪ- /
noun
the downy, yellow, sometimes rosy fruit, somewhat resembling a small peach, of the tree Prunus armeniaca.
the tree itself.
a pinkish yellow or yellowish pink.
Also called wild apricot. Chiefly South Midland U.S. the maypop vine and its fruit; passionfruit.
RELATED WORDS
Nearby words
Origin of apricot
1545–55; < Middle French abricot < Portuguese albricoque or Spanish albar(i)coque < Arabic al the + barqūq < Medieval Greek < Late Latin praecocquum, for Latin (persicum) praecox literally, early-ripening peach, perhaps referring to the apricot (see peach1, precocious); replacing earlier abrecock < Portuguese or Spanish; later p for Middle French b perhaps < Latin praecox
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for apricot
British Dictionary definitions for apricot
apricot
/ (ˈeɪprɪˌkɒt) /
noun
a rosaceous tree, Prunus armeniaca, native to Africa and W Asia, but widely cultivated for its edible fruit
the downy yellow juicy edible fruit of this tree, which resembles a small peach
Word Origin for apricot
C16: earlier apricock, from Portuguese (albricoque) or Spanish, from Arabic al-birqūq the apricot, from Late Greek praikokion, from Latin praecox early-ripening; see precocious
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