cherry
Pluralcherries
Pluralcherries
Formscherries, cherrying, cherried
- 1A small, round fruit with soft flesh, a smooth hard seed inside, and a long, thin stem.
Like a small grape, but with a hard seed in the middle.
She picked a ripe cherry from the bowl on the table.
The cherries were sweet and juicy this summer.
UsageOne cherry, two cherries. The hard part in the middle is a stone or pit.
- 2A tree or bush that grows cherries.
Like an apple tree, but it grows cherries instead of apples.
We planted a young cherry beside the fence last spring.
Each spring the cherries along the lane burst into white blossom.
UsagePeople often say cherry tree. The flowers are cherry blossom.
- 3Containing cherries or tasting like them.
He poured himself a tall glass of cherry juice.
These cough drops are cherry flavored and easy to take.
- 4The wood that comes from a cherry tree.
The dining table was made of polished cherry.
He likes furniture built from cherry because of its warm color.
- 5Having a bright red color.
Like the bright red of a stop sign.
He drove a cherry red convertible down the coast road.
The dancer's cherry red shoes caught the stage light.
- 6A bright red color.
Like the bright red of a ripe cherry.
She painted the bedroom walls a warm cherry.
The car came in three shades, including a deep cherry.
- 7A person's virginity, especially a woman's.
He bragged about losing his cherry during his first year at college.
She kept her cherry until she was married.
UsageUsually lose your cherry. Do not use it in polite talk.
Similarvirginity
Note
- 8The small fruit of a coffee plant, with the coffee beans inside.
Like a small berry that holds coffee beans inside.
She cut open a coffee cherry to show us the two beans inside.
The coffee cherries turn deep red when they are ripe.
Less common meanings
- 9
- 10
- 11A round red light of the kind put on top of a police car.
Like a small red lamp that spins on top of the car.
The cruiser's cherry spun and flashed red.
He saw the cherries flashing behind him and pulled over.
Similarcherrytop
Note
- 12A red ball used in the game of cricket.
Like a baseball, but red and used in the game of cricket.
The bowler shined the cherry just before his run-up.
He smacked the cherry hard to the boundary.
UsageUsually the cherry, as in the new cherry.
Similarball
Note
- 13To make something turn red.
Note
- 14To make someone feel happy.
Note
- 15A reddish mark left on a cricket bat where the ball hit it.
- 16In math, a point joined to exactly two end points in a tree shape.
Showing meanings only.
Practice
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Origin
It comes from a Latin word for cherry, which came from the Greek word for the cherry fruit. The word may have started in Anatolia.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 3 facts
- English cherry ultimately derives from a Latin word meaning cherry. en.wiktionary.org
- The Latin word derives from the Ancient Greek word for the cherry fruit. en.wiktionary.org
- The word may ultimately have originated in Anatolia. en.wiktionary.org