banana
Americannoun
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a tropical plant of the genus Musa, certain species of which are cultivated for their nutritious fruit.
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the fruit, especially that of M. paradisiaca, with yellow or reddish rind.
noun
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any of several tropical and subtropical herbaceous treelike plants of the musaceous genus Musa , esp M. sapientum , a widely cultivated species propagated from suckers and having hanging clusters of edible fruit
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the crescent-shaped fruit of any of these plants Compare plantain 2
Etymology
Origin of banana
1590–1600; < Spanish < Portuguese (perhaps via Sp); akin to various words for banana or plantain in WAfr languages (e.g., Wolof, Malinke banana, Vai (Mande language of Liberia) bana ), but ultimate source and direction of borrowing uncertain
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Likewise, rising voter concern about food prices has led to tariffs on imports of coffee, bananas and some beef being ditched.
“Coffee and bananas and cocoa are textbook examples of products that Americans love and will never be supplied domestically even with 1,000% tariffs,” said Dan Anthony, president of Trade Partnership Worldwide.
The president has cut tariffs on grocery items like coffee, bananas, beef and avocados.
From BBC
When Atlanta officials began surveying the area, they could scarcely find a store that sold any fresh food other than the occasional banana.
The exemptions covered other Ghanaian agricultural products including cashew nuts, avocados, bananas, mangoes, plantain, pineapples, coconuts, ginger and peppers, he said.
From Barron's
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
