avocado

American  

[av-uh-kah-doh, ah-vuh-] / ˌæv əˈkɑ doʊ, ˌɑ və- /

noun

• avocados
  plural

1. Also called alligator pear.  a large, usually pear-shaped fruit having green to blackish skin, a single large seed, and soft, light-green pulp, borne by the tropical American tree Persea americana and its variety P. adrymifolia, often eaten raw, especially in salads.

2. the tree itself.

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avocado British  

/ ˌævəˈkɑːdəʊ /

noun

1. a pear-shaped fruit having a leathery green or blackish skin, a large stony seed, and a greenish-yellow edible pulp

2. the tropical American lauraceous tree, Persea americana, that bears this fruit

3. 1. a dull greenish colour resembling that of the fruit

   2. (as modifier)

      an avocado bathroom suite

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• avocados
  plural

Etymology

Origin of avocado

1690–1700; alteration of Spanish abogado literally, lawyer ( see advocate), by confusion with Mexican Spanish aguacate < Nahuatl āhuacatl avocado, testicle; cf. alligator pear

Explanation

An avocado is a fruit with a thick green skin and mild, creamy flesh. If you've ever eaten guacamole, you've tasted avocado. It might seem strange that an avocado is a fruit, because it's not sweet. Avocados have to be cut open before you eat them, and the hard pit in the middle needs to be removed. The inside of an avocado is firm but soft, a pale green shade. The word avocado is Spanish, from aguacate, and rooted in a Proto-Aztecan word, *pawa, that also meant avocado.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

avocado avocados

But the Bloody Mary-soaked, avocado toast-forward version as many knew it seems to be over.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026

I order my tacos with avocado, a side of cebollitas asadas — bulb onions grilled until tender and charred — and a large jamaica.

From Salon ● Sep. 8, 2026

Foods including avocado, quinoa, açaí, aguaymanto, chia, and pumpkin seeds were incorporated as locally accessible options.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 6, 2026

Danger lurked in the shady groves of avocado trees that stretched on the mountainsides as far as the eye could see.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 6, 2026

Kainene was inspecting her plate with that arch expression of hers, as if she were mocking the avocado.

From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Agricultural produce commonly exported includes mangoes, avocados, herbs and grapes.

From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026

Ripe fruit would fall off trees and be eaten by dogs, earning avocados the unappetising name dog fruit, he says.

From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026

Two years later, when Meghan did so, the Daily Mail blamed eating avocados for causing droughts and human rights abuse.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026

It also could affect consumer prices of the fruit in the U.S., which receives 90% of its avocados from Mexico.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

Squash the avocados, then toss in the rest.

From "Beast Rider" by Tony Johnston & María Elena Fontanot de Rhoads