Aubergine

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈəʊ.bə.ʒiːn/

Definitions

1. A glossy-skinned fruit, commonly used in culinary dishes, that is botanically classified as a berry in the nightshade family
2. A purple-skinned vegetable, often prepared in Mediterranean cuisine, that is botanically a fruit and offers a unique flavor profile
3. A deep purple fruit often utilized in cooking, which belongs to the nightshade family and is known for its distinct texture and taste

Etymology: The vegetable's name travelled a long way before reaching English. In Sanskrit, "vātiṅgaṇa" meant something like "the plant that cures the wind," a name tied to the old belief that the plant relieved bodily wind. The word then passed through Classical Persian and Arabic, where the Arabic "al-bāḏinjān" carried the definite article "al-" that English later lost. Arab traders and scholars carried it westward, and it reached Catalan as "albergínia" before French adopted it as "aubergine." English took the word from French, though it did so without adapting it, which is why the spelling and the French pronunciation still show. The "al-" fragment survives in the Catalan form, which is the clearest trace of the Arabic article. English also has other words from the same root that entered by different routes, such as "brinjal" and "melongene," which are doublets of "aubergine." Its cousins in South Asia, like the Hindi "baiṅgan," show the same ancient word still alive far from the Mediterranean.

Synonyms: eggplant