Editing Fruit (section)

== Botanical vs. culinary ==
{{Also|Vegetable#Terminology}}
[[File:FruitArrangement.jpg|thumb|An arrangement of fruits commonly thought of as culinary vegetables, including [[maize|corn (maize)]], [[tomato]]es, and various [[Squash (fruit)|squash]]]]

Many common language terms used for fruit and seeds differ from botanical classifications. For example, in botany, a ''fruit'' is a ripened [[ovary (botany)|ovary]] or [[carpel]] that contains seeds, e.g., an orange, pomegranate, tomato or a pumpkin. A ''[[Nut (fruit)|nut]]'' is a type of fruit (and not a seed), and a ''seed'' is a ripened [[ovule]].<ref name="McGee247" />

In culinary language, a [[List of culinary fruits|''fruit'']] is the sweet- or not sweet- (even sour-) tasting produce of a specific plant (e.g., a peach, pear or lemon); ''nuts'' are hard, oily, non-sweet plant produce in shells ([[hazelnut]], [[acorn]]). ''[[Vegetables]]'', so-called, typically are [[Umami|savory]] or non-sweet produce ([[zucchini]], lettuce, broccoli, and tomato). but some may be sweet-tasting (sweet potato).<ref>For a [[Supreme Court of the United States]] ruling on the matter, see ''[[Nix v. Hedden]]''.</ref>
[[File:Fresh Fruit Plate.jpg|thumb|Fresh fruit plate]]
Examples of botanically classified fruit that are typically called vegetables include [[cucumber]], [[pumpkin]], and [[Squash (plant)|squash]] (all are [[cucurbits]]); [[bean]]s, [[peanut]]s, and [[pea]]s (all [[legumes]]); and [[maize|corn]], [[eggplant]], [[bell pepper]] (or sweet pepper), and [[tomato]]. Many spices are fruits, botanically speaking, including [[black pepper]], [[chili pepper]], [[cumin]] and [[allspice]].<ref name="McGee247">{{cite book |last=McGee |first=Harold |author-link=Harold McGee |title=On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iX05JaZXRz0C&q=On+Food+And+Cooking&pg=PA247 |year=2004 |publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]] |isbn=978-0-684-80001-1 |pages=247–48 |access-date=2020-10-06 |archive-date=2024-01-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240130053312/https://books.google.com/books?id=iX05JaZXRz0C&q=On+Food+And+Cooking&pg=PA247#v=snippet&q=On%20Food%20And%20Cooking&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> In contrast, [[rhubarb]] is often called a fruit when used in making [[pies]], but the edible produce of rhubarb is actually the leaf stalk or [[petiole (botany)|petiole]] of the plant.<ref>{{cite book |last=McGee |title=On Food and Cooking |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iX05JaZXRz0C&q=On+Food+And+Cooking&pg=PA367 |page=367 |isbn=978-0-684-80001-1 |year=2004 |publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]] |access-date=2020-10-06 |archive-date=2024-01-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240130053419/https://books.google.com/books?id=iX05JaZXRz0C&q=On+Food+And+Cooking&pg=PA367#v=snippet&q=On%20Food%20And%20Cooking&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> Edible [[gymnosperm]] seeds are often given fruit names, e.g., [[Ginkgo biloba|ginkgo]] nuts and [[pine nut]]s.

Botanically, a [[cereal]] grain, such as [[maize|corn]], [[rice]], or [[wheat]] is a kind of fruit (termed a [[caryopsis]]). However, the fruit wall is thin and fused to the seed coat, so almost all the edible grain-fruit is actually a seed.<ref>{{cite book |last=Lewis |title=CRC Dictionary of Agricultural Sciences |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TwRUZK0WTWAC&q=fruit&pg=PA238 |page=238 |isbn=978-0-8493-2327-0 |year=2002 |publisher=CRC Press |access-date=2020-10-06 |archive-date=2024-01-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240130053313/https://books.google.com/books?id=TwRUZK0WTWAC&q=fruit&pg=PA238#v=snippet&q=fruit&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref>