The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Lotus \Lo"tus\ (l[=o]"t[u^]s), n. [L. lotus, Gr. lwto`s. Cf.
   Lote.]
   1. (Bot.)
      (a) A name of several kinds of water lilies; as Nelumbium
          speciosum, used in religious ceremonies, anciently in
          Egypt, and to this day in Asia; Nelumbium luteum,
          the American lotus; and Nymph[ae]a Lotus and
          Nymph[ae]a c[ae]rulea, the respectively
          white-flowered and blue-flowered lotus of modern
          Egypt, which, with Nelumbium speciosum, are figured
          on its ancient monuments.
      (b) The lotus of the lotuseaters, probably a tree found in
          Northern Africa, Sicily, Portugal, and Spain
          (Zizyphus Lotus), the fruit of which is mildly
          sweet. It was fabled by the ancients to make strangers
          who ate of it forget their native country, or lose all
          desire to return to it.
      (c) The lote, or nettle tree. See Lote.
      (d) A genus (Lotus) of leguminous plants much resembling
          clover. [Written also lotos.]
          [1913 Webster]

   European lotus, a small tree (Diospyros Lotus) of
      Southern Europe and Asia; also, its rather large bluish
      black berry, which is called also the date plum.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. (Arch.) An ornament much used in Egyptian architecture,
      generally asserted to have been suggested by the Egyptian
      water lily.
      [1913 Webster] Lotus-eater

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Date \Date\, n.[F. datte, L. dactylus, fr. Gr. ?, prob. not the
   same word as da`ktylos finger, but of Semitic origin.] (Bot.)
   The fruit of the date palm; also, the date palm itself.
   [1913 Webster]

   Note: This fruit is somewhat in the shape of an olive,
         containing a soft pulp, sweet, esculent, and wholesome,
         and inclosing a hard kernel.
         [1913 Webster]

   Date palm, or Date tree (Bot.), the genus of palms which
      bear dates, of which common species is Ph[oe]nix
      dactylifera. See Illust.

   Date plum (Bot.), the fruit of several species of
      Diospyros, including the American and Japanese
      persimmons, and the European lotus (Diospyros Lotus).

   Date shell, or Date fish (Zool.), a bivalve shell, or its
      inhabitant, of the genus Pholas, and allied genera. See
      Pholas.
      [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

Diospyros lotus
    n 1: an Asiatic persimmon tree cultivated for its small yellow
         or purplish-black edible fruit much valued by Afghan tribes
         [syn: date plum, Diospyros lotus]