papaya

noun

• 1a tropical fruit shaped like an elongated melon, with edible orange flesh and small black seeds. Also called papaw or pawpaw.

• 2 (also papaya tree) the fast-growing tree that bears the papaya, native to warm regions of America. It is widely cultivated for its fruit, both for eating and for papain production.

  • Carica papaya, family Caricaceae