avocado

[av-uh-kah-doh, ah-vuh-]

noun

plural

avocados 

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.

avocado

/ 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

Word History and Origins

Origin of avocado¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of avocado¹

C17: from Spanish aguacate, from Nahuatl ahuacatl testicle, alluding to the shape of the fruit

Example Sentences

Delgado chalks up his health to the fact that he’s been a pescatarian for 45 years, with a penchant for salmon, avocados, quinoa and garbanzo beans, and that he prioritizes hydration.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Foods high in potassium—sweet potatoes, salmon, spinach, avocados, bananas—are also healthy.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

It’s got avocado and chicken and bacon and currants and almonds.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Some Lay’s varieties are switching to olive or avocado oil from seed and corn oils.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Its agro-ecological diversity is critical for subsistence farming and staple food crops, such as avocados, cassava and maize, as well as export products like cocoa, coffee, bananas and cotton.

Read more on Barron's