pawpaw
Americannoun
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a tree, Asimina triloba, of the annona family, native to the eastern United States, having large, oblong leaves and purplish flowers.
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the fleshy, edible fruit of this tree.
noun
Etymology
Origin of pawpaw
First recorded in 1620–30; unexplained variant of papaye “papaya”; see papaya
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.
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
If anything, she said, pawpaw hype tends to come from consumers and media more than growers themselves.
From Salon • Aug. 14, 2024
Despite the rising recognition of the pawpaw, its uniqueness is at once a valuable trait and a major roadblock.
From Salon • Aug. 14, 2024
She walks past the pawpaw tree, past the rows of gangly bird of paradise, past the house of her neighbor, Ilda Limon, and down a sandy path skirting the beach.
From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García
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.
