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banana

banana

348 1.0
A long curved yellow fruit with soft sweet flesh eaten raw
  • noun
  • /bəˈnænə/
: banana
  • She peeled the banana and enjoyed its sweet taste.
  • eat a banana
  • peel a banana
  • bananas and other fruit

Somebody says they eat bananas with the skin on.

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Examples

  • The air was hot and soft, carrying the scent of cloves and fried banana everywhere we went.

    Fiction book (1997)
  • Boy, I sure could use a banana as a snack.

  • I can take the banana, and then I can cut it.

  • It's just a frozen banana and it's so good.

  • So we have a banana, an egg and some bread.

  • Banana bread, just like you like it.

  • I offered him juice, toast, and a banana, and he ate with a good appetite.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • I gave it a miss and ate a piece of toast with bananas and butter.

    Fiction book (1996)
  • We are making oatmeal, banana choc chip bread.

  • Then there were 23 fruits, including apples, bananas, oranges, raisins, and tomatoes.

    Academic text (2007)

Synonyms

fruit
vsbanana
809 1.0

An edible part of a plant like an apple or orange

is a specific long curved tropical food with sweet soft flesh
Cavendish
vsbanana
1 4.8

A common banana variety grown and sold worldwide

is the general tropical curved food with soft sweet flesh
Musa acuminata
vsbanana
  • Specialized
1 9.1

A low-growing Asian banana plant grown for clusters of edible yellow fruit

is an everyday description focusing on shape and sweet flesh
edible banana
vsbanana
1 1.0

A type of banana grown for its soft, sweet yellow flesh

is long and curved with yellow skin and soft sweet flesh
Musa paradisiaca
vsbanana
  • Specialized
1 7.5

A banana plant that grows in warm places and produces starchy fruits you can cook

is about soft sweet ripe yellow food rather than starchy ones
dwarf banana
vsbanana
4.4

A small banana tree that grows near the ground and makes sweet yellow fruit

is the general curved tropical food not focused on plant height

Compounds

12 1.2

The skin of a banana that is slippery and can make someone fall

11 1.0

A sweet, moist bread made with mashed bananas often served as a snack

11 7.9

A small country with a weak, corrupt government whose economy depends on one export that foreign companies control

10 1.0

A dessert of a banana with scoops of ice cream, sauces, nuts, and whipped cream

4 1.4

A large tropical plant that grows bananas

second banana
  • Informal
4 7.6

A person who supports the main performer, often in comedy

top banana
  • Archaic
1 7.7

The most important person in a group or organization

1 1.1

A banana that is not ripe and is still green and firm

1 3.4

A long inflatable boat like a banana pulled by a speedboat for fun

A cold drink made by blending bananas with milk or yogurt

1 2.1

The outer peel that is left after you eat a banana

banana oil
  • Specialized
1 8.2

A colorless liquid with a strong banana smell used to dissolve things and give a banana flavor

1 3.6

A ship that carries bananas from tropical countries

banana bender
  • Australian
1 9.9

A lively, wild party or a quirky person who behaves wildly

banana family
  • Specialized
1 3.5

A group of tropical tree-like plants that includes bananas

A type of banana grown for its soft, sweet yellow flesh

1 7.7

A toy or real banana used like a phone for fun

A long tropical fruit with soft sweet inside that people eat or make into juice

A large evergreen plant like a banana with very large leaves often grown in gardens

A garden plant with large tropical leaves that survives cool winters

A small banana tree that grows near the ground and makes sweet yellow fruit

9.1

An unusual tournament setup that makes winners hard to predict

9.9

A small tropical bird with a curved bill that drinks nectar from flowers

A large evergreen plant with big leaves whose fruit is not eaten but whose young flower shoots people eat

A name for a fun children's character or ride in parks and shows

A small wild tree that makes soft, sweet fruit like a banana

How Ripe

rotten
70 1.0
overripe
6 3.0
ripe
65 1.0
banana
348 1.0
green banana
1 1.1

Surface Forms

banana singular
bananas plural

Etymology

Banana probably comes from a West African word that reached Europe through Portuguese sailors who brought the yellow fruit to new places. So the name stuck to the long, curved, sweet fruit we eat today.