medlars

noun

1. a small tree, Mespilus germanica, of the rose family, the fruit of which resembles a crab apple and is not edible until the early stages of decay.
2. any of certain related trees.
3. the fruit of any of these trees.

noun

1. a small Eurasian rosaceous tree, Mespilus germanica
2. the fruit of this tree, which resembles the crab apple and is not edible until it has begun to decay
3. any of several other rosaceous trees or their fruits

n.“small fruit-bearing tree,” mid-14c. (in reference to the fruit itself), from Old French medler, variant of mesple, from Latin mespila “fruit of the medlar,” from Greek mespilion, a foreign word of unknown origin. The Old English name was openærs, literally “open-arse.” abbr.

1. Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System (computerized index system of the US National Library of Medicine)