grapefruit
Americannoun
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a large, roundish, yellow-skinned, edible citrus fruit having a juicy, acid pulp.
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the tropical or semitropical tree, Citrus paradisi, yielding this fruit.
noun
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a tropical or subtropical cultivated evergreen rutaceous tree, Citrus paradisi
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the large round edible fruit of this tree, which has yellow rind and juicy slightly bitter pulp
Etymology
Origin of grapefruit
1805–15; grape + fruit, apparently from the resemblance of its clusters to those of grapes
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.
Lemon is classic; lime sharpens; grapefruit feels slightly adult; orange reads Sunday morning.
From Salon • Mar. 17, 2026
Dan from Edinburgh says that his baby, due in early January, was at one point the size of a grapefruit.
From BBC • Dec. 31, 2025
Yonder Cider in Wenatchee, Wash., takes inspiration from cocktails to create ciders such as the Greyhound-like Sunnyslope, with pink grapefruit and lemon verbena.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 25, 2025
Orozco and his wife have run the modest cafe since 1997, serving items such as huevos rancheros, tacos, burgers and fajitas on oblong plates with a side of grapefruit.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 28, 2025
It was bitter and tasted like rancid grapefruit juice.
From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall
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.
