stone or seed? That is the question.

Recently I spoke with guys from Ireland and noticed that they call a hard seed in a cherry, plum, peach, and some other fruits "seed" rather than "stone". Although as far as I know 'seed' is refered to only with meaning of the unit of reproduction of a flowering plant, capable of developing into another such plant.

May someone help me to clear up this question?

I've never heard it refered to as a "seed" or a "stone" before. I always called it the "pit".

according to Oxford Explanatory Dictionary 'pit' is chiefly N. Amer. noun the 'stone of a fruit'

Ah, that explains it. "Stone" sounds like there's a rock in the middle of the fruit.

formerly "stone" was somewhat strange to me, too.
But I am so used to it now, that other variants grate on the ears))
That's why I'd like native-speakers to express their idea on this matter.

Dear Botanist

I did Biology at school and I remember a lot of discussion about fruits and seeds, and what is what.

A cherry stone, is self explanatory, a hard round object. I suppose they could have called it a cherry pebble but they didn't.

'Pit' sounds slightly unusual to me, but I am familiar with it.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nut_(fruit)


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seed


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fruit


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berry


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stone_fruit goes to Drupe


Drupe is a technical term not heard often.

In botany, a drupe is a fruit in which an outer fleshy part (exocarp, or skin; and mesocarp, or flesh) surrounds a shell (the pit or stone) of hardened endocarp with a seed inside.

The olive is an example of a drupe, fleshy exterior covering a stone.

Stone or seed? That is the question.


Easy


You can eat seeds, you cannot eat stones, although you can swallow them.




Is it safe to swallow olive stones? [Archive] - Sheffield Forum
www.sheffieldforum.co.uk/archive/index.php/t-183030.html

pips

Pip, the seed of several fruits such as apples and oranges

I call them seeds without exception.

It's a pit.

I would like to say to 'person' (I call them seeds without exception) and Skippy (It's a pit), please refer to the topic "Philistines". Because you call them 'seeds' means nothing. 'Pit' sounds like a mispronounciation of 'pip' which for some reason has taken hold in North America.

Yesterday I was eating two peaches. I put a large piece of peach in my mouth and I nearly cracked one of my teeth on a stone. How did a stone get into the centre of a peach?

If you look at the wikipedia articles, you will have some idea.





What I dislike about the antimoon forum is that it can very quickly descend into silly and abusive arguments about nothing.

In botany, a drupe is a fruit in which an outer fleshy part surrounds a shell (>the pit or stone<) of hardened endocarp with a seed inside. These fruits develop from a single carpel, and mostly from flowers with superior ovaries. The definitive characteristic of a drupe is that the hard, lignified >stone (or pit)< is derived from the ovary wall of the flower.

I think this extract clarifies everything.