avocado
[ av-uh-kah-doh, ah-vuh- ]
/ ˌæv əˈkɑ doʊ, ˌɑ və- /
|
noun, plural av·o·ca·dos.
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.
the tree itself.
Nearby words
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
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for avocado
British Dictionary definitions for avocado
avocado
/ (ˌævəˈkɑːdəʊ) /
noun plural -dos
a pear-shaped fruit having a leathery green or blackish skin, a large stony seed, and a greenish-yellow edible pulp
the tropical American lauraceous tree, Persea americana, that bears this fruit
- a dull greenish colour resembling that of the fruit
- (as modifier)an avocado bathroom suite
Also called (for senses 1, 2): avocado pear, alligator pear
Word Origin for avocado
C17: from Spanish aguacate, from Nahuatl ahuacatl testicle, alluding to the shape of the fruit
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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Word Origin and History for avocado
avocado
1763, from Spanish avocado, altered (by folk etymology influence of earlier Spanish avocado "lawyer," from same Latin source as advocate (n.)) from earlier aguacate, from Nahuatl ahuakatl "avocado" (with a secondary meaning "testicle" probably based on resemblance), from proto-Nahuan *pawa "avocado." As a color-name, first attested 1945. The English corruption alligator (pear) is 1763, from Mexican Spanish alvacata, alligato.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper