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Glite Dictionary
nutmeg melon

nutmeg melon

4.9
A melon with rough netted skin and sweet green flesh
  • noun
  • /ˈnʌtˌmɛɡ ˈmɛlən/
translation icon : melón nuez moscada
  • A ripe nutmeg melon has a sweet aroma and green, juicy flesh.

Examples

  • She sliced a nutmeg melon for dessert on a hot summer day.

  • I bought a fresh nutmeg melon from the market.

  • The farmer grew several varieties of nutmeg melon in his greenhouse.

  • The nutmeg melons are ripe this season.

  • A ripe nutmeg melon has a sweet aroma and green, juicy flesh.

  • She sliced a nutmeg melon for dessert on a hot summer day.

  • I bought a fresh nutmeg melon from the market.

Synonyms

melon
vsnutmeg melon
86 1.0

A large round or oval fruit with thick skin and soft sweet inside like a watermelon

is a much narrower variety defined by a netted rind and green flesh
muskmelon
vsnutmeg melon
1 5.3

A sweet, fragrant fruit with orange flesh like a cantaloupe

is a narrower, more specific variety within that broader fruit group
Cucumis melo reticulatus
vsnutmeg melon
  • Specialized
9.9

A melon with a net-like skin and sweet green flesh that people eat

is the everyday fruit name rather than the scientific plant term
netted melon
vsnutmeg melon
4.4

A sweet melon with a net-like skin and green flesh

is the same variety but known by a different common name
net melon
vsnutmeg melon
4.4

A sweet melon with green flesh and a net-like rind

is the same variety but called by another common name
sweet melon
vsnutmeg melon
2.6

A round fruit with sweet, juicy flesh eaten fresh

is identified more by its netted rind and green flesh than by sweetness
Cucumis melo
vsnutmeg melon
  • Specialized
8.1

A vine that makes sweet melons like cantaloupe or honeydew

is the specific cultivated fruit variety rather than the whole plant species

Surface Forms

nutmeg melon singular
nutmeg melons plural

Morphology

nutmeg + melon

This is a regular noun–noun compound where 'nutmeg' modifies 'melon', so a B1 learner who knows both words will infer it denotes a type or variety of melon associated with nutmeg (by flavour, aroma, or name). The modifier-noun composition is a common, transparent pattern in English, so the general meaning is directly derivable even if the learner would not know the botanical specifics.

Etymology

Nutmeg melon may come from people thinking the melon smelled or tasted like nutmeg, or from its skin which had a net-like pattern that looked a bit like ground nutmeg. So today nutmeg melon means a sweet muskmelon with green flesh and a nutmeg-like smell.