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):

Phoenix dactylifera
    n 1: tall tropical feather palm tree native to Syria bearing
         sweet edible fruit [syn: date palm, Phoenix
         dactylifera]