fruity

American  

[froo-tee] / ˈfru ti /

adjective

fruitier, fruitiest

1. resembling fruit; having the taste or smell of fruit.

2. rich in flavor; pungent.

3. excessively sweet or mellifluous; cloying; syrupy.

   a specialist in fruity prose; to read poetry in a fruity voice.

4. Slang. insane; crazy.

5. Slang: Extremely Disparaging and Offensive. of or like a gay man.

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fruity British  

/ ˈfruːtɪ /

adjective

1. of or resembling fruit

2. (of a voice) mellow or rich

3. ingratiating or unctuous

4. informal erotically stimulating; salacious

5. slang eccentric or insane

6. a slang word for homosexual

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Other Word Forms

• fruitily adverb
• fruitiness noun
• unfruity adjective

Etymology

Origin of fruity

First recorded in 1650–60; fruit + -y ¹

Example Sentences

For a wine newbie looking for something to pair with chicken, he suggested a fruity Merlot.

From The Wall Street Journal

Look beyond the basics: fruity vinegars like raspberry or yuzu; deeply savory options like Chinese black or umeboshi plum; something aged, herbal, or faintly mysterious, ideally with a good label.

From Salon

“They started making regular martinis and these new bars would refuse to make the fruity or sweet martinis… because they wanted to show Americans what cocktails were once and what they could be.”

From Salon

Wines from this grape usually skew tannic, even fierce, but the Niepoort version is the opposite: darkly fruity, slightly funky, fairly low in alcohol and very approachable.

From The Wall Street Journal

The balsamic adds a rich, almost fruity, flavor that helps cut the fattiness of the pancetta and the earthiness of the sprouts.

From Salon

Related Words

• mellow
• pleasant