English Explanatory Dictionary

mad-apple

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. eggplant; aubergine

Word forms

mad-apple mad-apples

Etymology

Calque of Renaissance Latin malum insanum, itself calqued from Italian melanzana, reanalyzed as if mela insana, perhaps under the influence of beliefs that it could cause various diseases. See further etymology at melongene.

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