1.
[syn: fruit fly, pomace fly]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Fruit \Fruit\, n. [OE. fruit, frut, F. fruit, from L. fructus
enjoyment, product, fruit, from frui, p. p. fructus, to
enjoy; akin to E. brook, v. t. See Brook, v. t., and cf.
Fructify, Frugal.]
1. Whatever is produced for the nourishment or enjoyment of
man or animals by the processes of vegetable growth, as
corn, grass, cotton, flax, etc.; -- commonly used in the
plural.
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Six years thou shalt sow thy land, and shalt gather
in the
fruits thereof. --Ex. xxiii.
10.
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2. (Hort.) The pulpy, edible seed vessels of certain plants,
especially those grown on branches above ground, as
apples, oranges, grapes, melons, berries, etc. See 3.
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3. (Bot.) The ripened ovary of a flowering plant, with its
contents and whatever parts are consolidated with it.
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Note: Fruits are classified as fleshy, drupaceous, and dry.
Fleshy fruits include berries, gourds, and melons,
orangelike fruits and pomes; drupaceous fruits are
stony within and fleshy without, as peaches, plums, and
cherries; and dry fruits are further divided into
achenes, follicles, legumes, capsules, nuts,
and several other kinds.
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4. (Bot.) The spore cases or conceptacles of flowerless
plants, as of ferns, mosses, algae, etc., with the spores
contained in them.
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6. The produce of animals; offspring; young; as, the fruit of
the womb, of the loins, of the body.
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King Edward's fruit, true heir to the English crown.
--Shak.
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6. That which is produced; the effect or consequence of any
action; advantageous or desirable product or result;
disadvantageous or evil consequence or effect; as, the
fruits of labor, of self-denial, of intemperance.
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The fruit of rashness. --Shak.
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What I obtained was the fruit of no bargain.
--Burke.
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They shall eat the fruit of their doings. --Is. iii
10.
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The fruits of this education became visible.
--Macaulay.
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Note: Fruit is frequently used adjectively, signifying of,
for, or pertaining to a fruit or fruits; as, fruit bud;
fruit frame; fruit jar; fruit knife; fruit loft; fruit
show; fruit stall; fruit tree; etc.
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Fruit bat (Zool.), one of the Frugivora; -- called also
fruit-eating bat.
Fruit bud (Bot.), a bud that produces fruit; -- in most
oplants the same as the power bud.
Fruit dot (Bot.), a collection of fruit cases, as in ferns.
See Sorus.
Fruit fly (Zool.), a small dipterous insect of the genus
Drosophila, which lives in fruit, in the larval state.
There are seveal species, some of which are very damaging
to fruit crops. One species, Drosophila melanogaster,
has been intensively studied as a model species for
genetic reserach.
Fruit jar, a jar for holding preserved fruit, usually made
of glass or earthenware.
Fruit pigeon (Zool.), one of numerous species of pigeons of
the family Carpophagid[ae], inhabiting India, Australia,
and the Pacific Islands. They feed largely upon fruit. and
are noted for their beautiful colors.
Fruit sugar (Chem.), a kind of sugar occurring, naturally
formed, in many ripe fruits, and in honey; levulose. The
name is also, though rarely, applied to invert sugar, or
to the natural mixture or dextrose and levulose resembling
it, and found in fruits and honey.
Fruit tree (Hort.), a tree cultivated for its edible fruit.
Fruit worm (Zool.), one of numerous species of insect
larv[ae]: which live in the interior of fruit. They are
mostly small species of Lepidoptera and Diptera.
Small fruits (Hort.), currants, raspberries, strawberries,
etc.
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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
fruit fly
n 1: any of numerous small insects whose larvae feed on fruits
[syn: fruit fly, pomace fly]