false fruit

7.6

A fruit like an apple or pear whose edible part comes from other flower parts

noun
/fɔls frʌt/

Specialized

: fruto falso

The apple is a classic example of a false fruit because its edible part is derived mainly from the receptacle.

Examples

Pears and quinces are also considered false fruits in botanical terms.
Unlike a berry, a false fruit includes tissues that are not part of the ovary.
An apple is a type of false fruit.
Did you know that a pear is also a false fruit?
The apple is a classic example of a false fruit because its edible part is derived mainly from the receptacle.
Pears and quinces are also considered false fruits in botanical terms.
Unlike a berry, a false fruit includes tissues that are not part of the ovary.

Synonyms

pseudocarp

vsfalse fruit

Specialized

9.9

A fruit like an apple or strawberry that forms mostly from parts of the flower outside the ovary

is the simple descriptive term for the same development from surrounding flower tissues

accessory fruit

vsfalse fruit

Specialized

8.4

A fruit whose flesh comes from flower parts, like an apple or strawberry

is the more general descriptive name for the same development from surrounding tissues

Surface Forms

false fruit singular

false fruits plural

Morphology

false + fruit

The phrase follows the familiar pattern 'false + noun' where 'false' signals 'not a true X', so a B1 learner who knows the words could plausibly infer it means 'not a true fruit'. However, the intended meaning is a technical botanical sense (an accessory fruit formed from non-ovary tissues) that is specialized and easily mistaken for 'fake' or 'artificial' fruit, so the exact sense is not fully predictable without domain knowledge.

Etymology

False fruit is a plant name for a fruit where the tasty, fleshy part grows from other parts of the flower, not the 'ovary'. So apples and pears are called false fruits because you eat the flower's surrounding tissue rather than the 'ovary' itself.