prairie banana

9.5

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

noun
/ˈprɛəri ˈbəˌnænə/

: banana de pradera

Local foragers prize the prairie banana for its custard-like fruit.

Examples

Pioneers often used prairie banana as a natural treat when crossing the plains.
I found a ripe prairie banana in the woods.
They found a ripe prairie banana on their morning walk through the meadows.
The prairie banana tree grows wild in many areas.
Local foragers prize the prairie banana for its custard-like fruit.
Pioneers often used prairie banana as a natural treat when crossing the plains.
They found a ripe prairie banana on their morning walk through the meadows.

Synonyms

pawpaw

vsprairie banana

1 8.2

A small tree that produces a soft yellow fruit eaten fresh

is the informal regional name used for the same tree in prairies and woods

Surface Forms

prairie banana singular

prairie bananas plural

Morphology

prairie + banana

The noun-noun compound combines 'prairie' (grassland) with 'banana' (a fruit), so a B1 learner who knows both words would reasonably infer it names a banana-like fruit found in prairies (i.e., a wild fruit). This straightforward modifier+head pattern is common and compositional across languages, making the meaning derivable from the constituents.

Etymology

Prairie banana may come from early settlers who found the pawpaw fruit growing on the prairie and tasting like a soft banana. Because of that clear image, the phrase now means the 'wild pawpaw fruit'.