gourd

noun

ˈgȯrd  ˈgu̇rd 

plural gourds

1

: any of a family (Cucurbitaceae, the gourd family) of chiefly herbaceous tendril-bearing vines including the cucumber, melon, squash, and pumpkin

2

: the fruit of a gourd : pepo

especially : any of various hard-rinded inedible fruits of plants of two genera (Lagenaria and Cucurbita) often used for ornament or for vessels and utensils

Walking through the various barrios, you might see people sharing sips from a little gourd with a straw in it.

—Bruce Sanderson

… a basketball-size gourd draped with a veil of wooden beads—to incite individual bursts of improvisation from the orchestra's players.

—The New Yorker

see also out of one's gourd

Examples of gourd in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Rare Animal at Disney's Animal Kingdom Gives Birth in Time to Celebrate Mother's Day Another moment features elephants picking up the gourds with their nose and placing them in their mouths for a fall snack. —Marina Watts, People.com, 28 Oct. 2024

The 19th annual event will once again gather 100,000 pumpkins, gourds and squash from America's pumpkin capital, Floydada. —Alexis Simmerman, Austin American-Statesman, 2 Oct. 2024

The sukkahs, or huts, commemorate the structures the Israelites lived in while wandering in the desert for 40 years and are often decorated with gourds, fruit and lights. —Isabelle Taft, New York Times, 25 Nov. 2024

Deck Your Doors Welcome the season with a fall wreath that features everyone’s favorite gourd. —Patricia Shannon, Better Homes & Gardens, 22 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English gourde, from Anglo-French gurde, gourde, from Latin cucurbita

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing gourd

• bottle gourd
• buffalo gourd
• out of one's gourd

Kids Definition

gourd

noun

ˈgō(ə)rd  ˈgȯ(ə)rd 

ˈgu̇(ə)rd

1

: any of a family of tendril-bearing vines (as the cucumber, melon, squash, and pumpkin)

2

: the usually hard-shell many-seeded fruit of a gourd

gourdlike

-ˌlīk

adjective