What does "banana" mean?
An elongated curved tropical fruit of a banana plant, which grows in bunches and has a creamy flesh and a smooth skin.
Banana
/bəˈnɑː.nə/ adj, name, noun, slang
adj, name, noun, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: An elongated curved tropical fruit of a banana plant, which grows in bunches and has a creamy flesh and a smooth skin.
- Grammar: banana is listed as adj, name, noun, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: banana plant, banana tree, bananas, berry.
- Useful contrasts: rationality, sanity.
- Usage evidence: Have you ever eaten a banana pie?
How to use "banana"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "banana" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "banana" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "banana" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "banana" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "banana" is acting as adj, name, noun, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "banana plant" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "banana", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An elongated curved tropical fruit of a banana plant, which grows in bunches and has a creamy flesh and a smooth skin. countable, uncountable
"Jimmy had a banana for breakfast."
- 2 One who objects to the building of any structure in their neighbourhood or a certain type of structure anywhere, especially in public policy debate. attributive, derogatory, humorous, informal, often
"David Taylor (Letters, January 23) does not appear to be aware that the NIMBY syndrome, with all its parochial overtones, has been superseded by the all embracing BANANA syndrome – Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anyone."
- 3 elongated crescent-shaped yellow fruit with soft sweet flesh wordnet
- 4 An elongated curved tropical fruit of a banana plant, which grows in bunches and has a creamy flesh and a smooth skin.; In particular, the sweet, yellow fruit of the Cavendish banana cultivar, which may be eaten raw, as distinct from e.g. a plantain for cooking. Canada, Ireland, UK, US, countable, uncountable
- 5 any of several tropical and subtropical treelike herbs of the genus Musa having a terminal crown of large entire leaves and usually bearing hanging clusters of elongated fruits wordnet
Show 9 more definitions
- 6 The tropical tree-like plant which bears clusters of bananas, a plant of the genus Musa (but sometimes also including plants from Ensete), which has large, elongated leaves. countable, uncountable
- 7 A yellow color, like that of a banana's skin. uncountable
- 8 A person of East or Southeast Asian descent, considered to be overly assimilated and subservient to white authority. countable, derogatory, ethnic, slur, uncountable
- 9 A person of Chinese descent who cannot speak Mandarin or any Chinese dialect Malaysia, Singapore, countable, derogatory, ethnic, slur, uncountable
- 10 The penis. countable, slang, uncountable
"The fact that the cop bought O'Brien a beer after feeling of his banana suggests that it must have been a promising one"
- 11 A banana kick. countable, uncountable
- 12 A banana equivalent dose. countable, uncountable
- 13 A catamorphism (from the use of banana brackets in the notation). colloquial, countable, uncountable
- 14 An incorrectly held handstand, often seen in beginners. countable, uncountable
Adjective
- 1 Curved like a banana, especially of a ball in flight. not-comparable
"Even the lowly banana ball, the bane of so many weekenders, sometimes can be exactly right, as in this case."
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
- 2 A village on Kiritimati, Kiribati.
"The principal economic activity is copra production, the Government copra plantation covering some 5,170 ha. The population in 1989 was estimated at 2,000, the great majority of whom live in London, Banana and Poland villages in the west."
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"Have you ever eaten a banana pie?"
Common questions
What is a synonym for "banana"?
Common synonyms include: banana plant, banana tree, bananas, berry, burlesquer, caricaturist.
How do you use "banana" in a sentence?
Have you ever eaten a banana pie?
How do you pronounce "banana"?
Pronounced /bəˈnɑː.nə/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Borrowed from Portuguese banana or Spanish banana, derived from a Niger-Congo language spoken in the Guinea region. Specific derivation is unclear. Possible ancestor or cognate languages include Wolof banaana, Eastern Maninkakan banana, and Vai ꕒꘌꕯ (ɓaana) or ꕒꕌꕯ (ɓaana), possibly from Arabic بَنَان (banān, “fingertip, banana”). However, Ay Baati Wolof (Munro & Gaye, 1997) posits that Wolof banaana is itself derived from Portuguese banana. The racial slur derives from the notion that they are “Yellow (East-Asian) on the outside, but White (Westernized) on the inside”.
Etymology 2
Contrived acronym of build absolutely nothing anywhere near anyone (or anything), as a play on "bananas" meaning "crazy, mad"