medlar

[ med-ler ]

/ ˈmɛd lər /

noun

a small tree, Mespilus germanica, of the rose family, the fruit of which resembles a crab apple and is not edible until the early stages of decay.

any of certain related trees.

the fruit of any of these trees.

Nearby words

medium-sized, mediumistic, mediums, medius, medivac, medlar, medlars, medley, medley relay, medline, medon

Origin of medlar

1325–75; Middle English medler < Anglo-French, equivalent to medle (Old French mesle the fruit < Latin mespilum < Greek méspilon) + -er -er²

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for medlar

Other fairly common fruit trees are the quince and loquat, or Japanese medlar.
Notes on Agriculture in Cyprus and Its Products|William Bevan
In the medlar the core (or true pericarp) is of a stony hardness, while the outer succulent covering is open at the summit.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 3|Various
The fruit may be eaten after it has begun to decay, as in the case of the Medlar.
Wayside and Woodland Trees|Edward Step
Not at all: Witwoud grows by the knight like a medlar grafted on a crab.
The Way of the World|William Congreve

The Dutch Medlar is most prized, as it bears the largest fruit.
Gardening for the Million|Alfred Pink

British Dictionary definitions for medlar

medlar

/ (ˈmɛdlə) /

noun

a small Eurasian rosaceous tree, Mespilus germanica

the fruit of this tree, which resembles the crab apple and is not edible until it has begun to decay

any of several other rosaceous trees or their fruits

Word Origin for medlar

C14: from Old French medlier, from Latin mespilum medlar fruit, from Greek mespilon

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for medlar

medlar

"small fruit-bearing tree," mid-14c. (in reference to the fruit itself), from Old French medler, variant of mesple, from Latin mespila "fruit of the medlar," from Greek mespilion, a foreign word of unknown origin. The Old English name was openærs, literally "open-arse."