avocado
pronunciation
How to pronounce avocado in British English:
UK [ˌævəˈkɑ:dəʊ]
How to pronounce avocado in American English:
US [ˌævəˈkɑdoʊ]
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- Noun:
- a pear-shaped tropical fruit with green or blackish skin and rich yellowish pulp enclosing a single large seed
- tropical American tree bearing large pulpy green fruits
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- Adjective:
- of the dull yellowish green of the meat of an avocado
Word Origin
- avocado
- avocado: [17] Anyone tucking into an avocado could well be taken aback to learn that in the South American Indian language from which the word originally came, it meant literally ‘testicle’. The Nahuatl Indians named the fruit ahuacatl ‘testicle’ on account of its shape. The Spanish conquistadors took the word over as aguacate, but before long this became altered by folk etymology (the substitution of familiar for unfamiliar forms) to avocado (literally ‘advocate’ in Spanish).When English borrowed the word, folk etymology took a hand yet again, for in the late 17th century it became known as the alligator pear, a name which survived into the 20th century.
- avocado (n.)
- 1763, from Spanish avocado, altered (by folk etymology influence of earlier Spanish avocado "lawyer," from same Latin source as advocate (n.)) from earlier aguacate, from Nahuatl (Aztecan) ahuakatl "avocado" (with a secondary meaning "testicle" probably based on resemblance), from proto-Nahuan *pawa "avocado." As a color-name, first attested 1945. The English corruption alligator (pear) is 1763, from Mexican Spanish alvacata, alligato.
Example
- 1. Add sliced avocado or guacamole to salads and sandwiches .
- 2. Useful tool designed for cutting uniform-sized cubes of avocado .
- 3. Of a single avocado 's 24 grams of fat , only 4 are saturated , so they help lower " bad " ldl cholesterol and raise " good " hdl levels .
- 4. I also love sprouted legumes with lemon juice , avocado and almonds .
- 5. For dry skin , somerville suggests adding salmon and avocado to your diet .