lychee
Britishnoun
Explanation
A lychee is a small, sweet fruit with a tough skin. Lychee trees are native to southeastern China, and the fruit is common in India and southeast Asia. You have to peel the thick rind off a lychee to get to the soft, fragrant fruit inside. Some people describe the delicate flavor as resembling a grape crossed with a rose. Lychee trees are evergreen, with clusters of sweet-smelling flowers. Lychees are most often eaten raw, or made into desserts and drinks. Lychee, sometimes spelled litchi, comes from the Chinese lìzhī.
Vocabulary lists containing lychee
World Cuisine - Introductory
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World Cuisine - Middle School and High School
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Measuring Up
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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.
And Indochine, which opened its doors in 1984, continues to offer its Lychee Saketini — sake chilled with lychee and lemon juices.
From Salon • Sep. 6, 2025
"Everyone, support the ban on fishing in the Yangtze River, and protect the habitats that are still in the Yangtze River," a user called Lychee said.
From Reuters • Jul. 22, 2022
The Lychee is complex — sweet and tart, with notes of pear and white grape.
From Washington Post • May 26, 2021
The environment, though, is improving, even in the home of the Yulin Lychee and Dog Meat Festival.
From New York Times • Jun. 23, 2020
Lychee martini, fish jumping, sun setting, whistle whetting.
From The Guardian • Jun. 4, 2020
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.
