grape

[greyp]

noun

1. the edible, pulpy, smooth-skinned berry or fruit that grows in clusters on vines of the genus Vitis, and from which wine is made.

2. any vine bearing this fruit.

3. a dull, dark, purplish-red color.

4. (used with a singular verb),  grapes,

   1. tuberculosis occurring in cattle, characterized by the internal formation of grapelike clusters, especially in the lungs.

   2. tuberculosis occurring in horses, characterized by grapelike clusters on the fetlocks.

5. grapeshot.

6. the grape, wine.

grape

/ ɡreɪp /

noun

1. the fruit of the grapevine, which has a purple or green skin and sweet flesh: eaten raw, dried to make raisins, currants, or sultanas, or used for making wine

2. any of various plants that bear grapelike fruit, such as the Oregon grape

3. See grapevine

4. an informal term for wine

5. See grapeshot

Other Word Forms

• grapelike adjective
• grapeless adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of grape¹

1200–50; Middle English < Old French, variant of crape cluster of fruit or flowers, originally hook (for pruning vines) < Germanic; compare German Krapf hook and grapple ( def. ), grapnel

Word History and Origins

Origin of grape¹

C13: from Old French grape bunch of grapes, of Germanic origin; compare Old High German krāpfo; related to _cramp ², _grapple

Idioms and Phrases

see sour grapes.

Example Sentences

Recently she considered tropes associated with the Pinot Noir grape, described with surprising frequency as “sensitive” and “feminine”—words many wine writers have tossed around with impunity.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

A new study in Environmental Research Letters finds that even the most advanced climate intervention methods may not be able to protect wine grapes, coffee, and cacao from a changing planet.

Read more on Science Daily

This discovery sparked the idea of developing an original, locally bred wine grape by combining Shiraga with Muscat of Alexandria.

Read more on Science Daily

She said the leaked video was down to "sour grapes" and that "not everybody has the same sense of service and duty and responsibility".

Read more on BBC

"There are 50 to 60 trucks, some with apples, others with pomegranates and grapes," said 25-year-old Gul, who only gave his first name.

Read more on Barron's