papaya
papaya , noun
[Probably from the native name in the West Indies; compare Sp. papayo papaw, papaya the fruit of the papaw.]
1.
(Botany) A tree (Carica Papaya) of tropical America, belonging to the order Passiflorea; called also papaw and pawpaw. It has a soft, spongy stem, eighteen or twenty feet high, crowned with a tuft of large, long-stalked, palmately lobed leaves. The milky juice of the plant is said to have the property of making meat tender.
2.
The fruit of the papaya tree; it is a dull orange-colored, melon-shaped fruit, which is eaten both raw and cooked or pickled. The fruit contains papain, a protease.