pawpaw

American  

[paw-paw] / ˈpɔˌpɔ /

Also papaw

noun

1. a tree, Asimina triloba, of the annona family, native to the eastern United States, having large, oblong leaves and purplish flowers.

2. the fleshy, edible fruit of this tree.

3. papaya.

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pawpaw British  

/ ˈpɔːˌpɔː /

noun

1. a variant of papaw papaya

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Etymology

Origin of pawpaw

First recorded in 1620–30; unexplained variant of papaye “papaya”; papaya

Example Sentences

Finger limes, pomelos, pawpaw and sapote, to name a handful.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 17, 2025

He went from standard citrus, apricot and avocado to a more exotic collection, adding finger limes, valentine pummelos, jaboticaba, cherimoya and pawpaw.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 20, 2025

Peterson tasted his first pawpaw, from a wild growing tree, in his university's arboretum as a graduate student studying plant genetics.

From Salon • Aug. 14, 2024

This past spring at KSU's 12-acre pawpaw orchard, researchers caged some of its flowers with sticky traps.

From Salon • Aug. 14, 2024

Then she flies past the rows of gangly bird of paradise, past the pawpaw tree with ripening fruit, and loses a sandal taking the three front steps in an inelegant leap.

From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García