What does "medlar" mean?
Mespilus germanica, common medlar (now often Crataegus germanica).
Medlar
/ˈmɛdlə/ noun
noun ·Uncommon ·College level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Mespilus germanica, common medlar (now often Crataegus germanica).
- Grammar: medlar is listed as noun.
- Nearest alternatives: medlar tree, berry, ebony, fruit.
- Useful contrasts: inedible fruit.
- Usage evidence: Ziri was playing under a medlar tree.
How to use "medlar"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "medlar" 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 "medlar" 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 "medlar" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "medlar" 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 "medlar" is acting as noun 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 "medlar tree" 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 "medlar", 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 Mespilus germanica, common medlar (now often Crataegus germanica).
- 2 crabapple-like fruit used for preserves wordnet
- 3 Any tree of the genus Mespilus, now Crataegus sect. Mespilus, including many species now in other genera.
- 4 a South African globular fruit with brown leathery skin and pithy flesh having a sweet-acid taste wordnet
- 5 Any of several similar trees that bear similar fruit:; Stern's medlar (Crataegus × canescens: family Rosaceae).
Show 10 more definitions
- 6 small deciduous Eurasian tree cultivated for its fruit that resemble crab apples wordnet
- 7 Any of several similar trees that bear similar fruit:; Mediterranean medlar or azarole (Crataegus azarolus: family Rosaceae).
- 8 small deciduous tree of southern Africa having edible fruit wordnet
- 9 Any of several similar trees that bear similar fruit:; Japanese medlar or loquat (Eriobotrya japonica: family Rosaceae).
- 10 Any of several similar trees that bear similar fruit:; Spanish medlar or bulletwood (Mimusops elengi: family Sapotaceae).
- 11 Any of several similar trees that bear similar fruit:; African medlar (Vangueria infausta: family Rubiaceae).
- 12 Any of several similar trees that bear similar fruit:; Wolfberry, goji, red medlar (Lycium spp.).
- 13 The fruit of such trees, similar to small apples
- 14 The fruit of such trees, similar to small apples:; Especially that of Crataegus sect. Mespilus, not eaten until it has begun to decay, or more specifically, to blet.
- 15 A woman or a woman's genitalia (as the fruit's appearance resembles an "open-arse"). derogatory
"I was once before him for getting a wench with child....but I was fain to forswear it; they would else have married me to the rotten medlar."
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
inedible fruit
Example
"Ziri was playing under a medlar tree."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "medlar"?
Common synonyms include: medlar tree, berry, ebony, fruit, medlar fruit, mespilus.
How do you use "medlar" in a sentence?
Ziri was playing under a medlar tree.
How do you pronounce "medlar"?
Pronounced /ˈmɛdlə/.
Etymology
From Middle English medler, medeler, from Old French medler, meslier, from medle, mesdle (“medlar fruit”), from Latin mespilum, from Ancient Greek μέσπιλον (méspilon). Related to the rare mesple, via Proto-West Germanic *mespilā. Displaced Old English openærs (“open-arse”) (and similar names, from anatomical comparison).