First Known Use: 1580
Dictionary
apricot
noun, apri·cot often attributive \ˈa-prə-ˌkät, ˈā-\
: a small orange-colored fruit that is related to the peach and plum
Full Definition of APRICOT
1
a : the oval orange-colored fruit of a temperate-zone tree (Prunus armeniaca) resembling the related peach and plum in flavor b : a tree that bears apricots
2
: a variable color averaging a moderate orange
See apricot defined for English-language learners
See apricot defined for kids
ADVERTISEMENT
Origin of APRICOT
alteration of earlier abrecock, ultimately from Arabic al-birqūq the apricot, ultimately from Latin (persicum) praecox, literally, early ripening (peach) — more at precocious
Rhymes with APRICOT
aeronaut, aliquot, angle shot, apparat, aquanaut, argonaut, astronaut, beauty spot, bergamot, booster shot, burning ghat, cachalot, Camelot, caveat, carry-cot, chamber pot, chimney pot, coffeepot, cosmonaut, counterplot, doodley-squat, floreat, flowerpot, flying spot, follow shot, gallipot, granny knot, guillemot, Gujarat, hit the spot, honeypot, Hottentot, Huguenot, juggernaut, kilowatt, Lancelot, like a shot, lobster pot, megawatt, melting pot, microdot, monocot, monoglot, noble rot, Nouakchott, ocelot, on the spot, overshot, paraquat, parking lot, passing shot, patriot, pepper pot, peridot, piping hot, polka dot, polyglot, running knot, samizdat, sansculotte, scattershot, scot and lot, shoulder knot, single knot, Southern blot, stopper knot, surgeon's knot, terawatt, tie the knot, tommyrot, touch-me-not, tracking shot, turkey trot, underplot, undershot, Western blot, Windsor knot, Wyandot, wyandotte
APRICOT Defined for Kids
apricot
noun apri·cot \ˈa-prə-ˌkät, ˈā-\
Definition of APRICOT for Kids
: a small oval orange-colored fruit that looks like the related peach and plum
Word History of APRICOT
The Romans seem to have thought that apricots were “early-ripening peaches,” since that is the literal meaning of the Latin name for the fruit: persica praecocia. The second word in this phrase was borrowed by the Greeks, in the form praikokion, as their name for the fruit. When the Arabs entered the Mediterranean Sea region in the early Middle Ages, they in turn borrowed the Greek word as barqūq, and Arabic al-barqūq, “the apricot,” is the ultimate source of the English word apricot.
Learn More About APRICOT
Browse
Next Word in the Dictionary: apricot palmPrevious Word in the Dictionary: apricockAll Words Near: apricot
ADVERTISEMENT
Seen & Heard
What made you want to look up apricot? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).