Category:Papaw

Pa*paw", n. Etym: [prob. from the native name in the west indies; cf. Sp. papayo papaw, papaya the fruit of the papaw.] [written also Pawpaw.]

1. (bot.)

Defn: a tree (carica papaya) of tropical america, belonging to the Order passifloreæ. It has a soft, spongy stem, eighteen or twenty Feet high, crowned with a tuft of large, long-stalked, palmately Lobed leaves. The milky juice of the plant is said to have the Property of making meat tender. Also, its dull orange-colored, melon- Shaped fruit, which is eaten both raw and cooked or pickled.

2. (bot.)

Defn: a tree of the genus asimina (a. triloba), growing in the Western and southern parts of the united states, and producing a Sweet edible fruit; also, the fruit itself. Gray.