pear

Meaning

Noun

• An edible fruit produced by the pear tree, similar to an apple but elongated towards the stem.
• A type of fruit tree (Pyrus communis).
• The wood of the pear tree (pearwood, pear wood).
• Choke pear (a torture device).
• avocado, alligator pear
• A desaturated chartreuse yellow colour, like that of a pear.

Origin

• From Middle English pere, from Old English pere, from Proto-West Germanic *peru, from Vulgar Latin *pira, originally the plural of Latin pirum but reconstrued as a feminine singular. Cognate with Saterland Frisian Peere ("pear"), Dutch peer ("pear"), Danish pære ("pear"), French poire ("pear"), German Birne ("pear"), Icelandic pera ("pear"), Swedish päron ("pear").