Syn. -- Economy; parsimony. See Economy.
Fru"gal*ly (?), adv. Thriftily; prudently.
Fru"gal*ness, n. Quality of being frugal; frugality.
Fru*gif"er*ous (?), a. [L. frugifer; frux, frugis, fruit + ferre to
bear: cf. F. frugifere.] Producing fruit; fruitful; fructiferous. Dr.
H. More.
||Fru*giv"o*ra (?), n. pl. [NL. See Frugivorous.] (Zoˆl.) The fruit
||bate; a group of the Cheiroptera, comprising the bats which live on
||fruits. See Eruit bat, under Fruit.
Fru*giv"o*rous (?), a. [L. frux, frugis, fruit + vorare to devour.: cf.
F. frugivore.] Feeding on fruit, as birds and other animals. Pennant.
Fruit (?), n. [OE. fruit, frut, F. fruit, from L. fructus enjoyment,
product, fruit, from frui, p. p. fructus, to enjoy; akin to E. brook,
v. t. See Brook, v. t., and cf. Fructify, Frugal.] 1. Whatever is
produced for the nourishment or enjoyment of man or animals by the
processes of vegetable growth, as corn, grass, cotton, flax, etc.; --
commonly used in the plural.
Six years thou shalt sow thy land, and shalt gather in the fruits
thereof.
Ex. xxiii. 10.
2. (Hort.) The pulpy, edible seed vessels of certain plants, especially
those grown on branches above ground, as apples, oranges, grapes,
melons, berries, etc. See 3.
3. (Bot.) The ripened ovary of a flowering plant, with its contents and
whatever parts are consolidated with it.
Fruits are classified as fleshy, drupaceous, and dry. Fleshy fruits
include berries, gourds, and melons, orangelike fruits and pomes;
drupaceous fruits are stony within and fleshy without, as peaches,
plums, and cherries; and dry fruits are further divided into achenes,
follicles, legumes, capsules, nuts, and several other kinds. [1913
Webster]
4. (Bot.) The spore cases or conceptacles of flowerless plants, as of
ferns, mosses, algae, etc., with the spores contained in them.
6. The produce of animals; offspring; young; as, the fruit of the womb,
of the loins, of the body.
King Edward's fruit, true heir to the English crown.
Shak.
6. That which is produced; the effect or consequence of any action;
advantageous or desirable product or result; disadvantageous or evil
consequence or effect; as, the fruits of labor, of self-denial, of
intemperance.
The fruit of rashness.
Shak.
What I obtained was the fruit of no bargain.
Burke.
They shall eat the fruit of their doings.
Is. iii 10.
The fruits of this education became visible.
Macaulay.
Fruit is frequently used adjectively, signifying of, for, or pertaining
to a fruit or fruits; as, fruit bud; fruit frame; fruit jar; fruit
knife; fruit loft; fruit show; fruit stall; fruit tree; etc.
Fruit bat (Zoˆl.), one of the Frugivora; -- called also fruit-eating
bat. -- Fruit bud (Bot.), a bud that produces fruit; -- in most oplants
the same as the power bud. Fruit dot (Bot.), a collection of fruit
cases, as in ferns. See Sorus. -- Fruit fly (Zoˆl.), a small dipterous
insect of the genus Drosophila, which lives in fruit, in the larval
state. -- Fruit jar, a jar for holding preserved fruit, usually made of
glass or earthenware. -- Fruit pigeon (Zoˆl.), one of numerous species
of pigeons of the family CarpophagidÊ, inhabiting India, Australia, and
the Pacific Islands. They feed largely upon fruit. and are noted for
their beautiful colors. -- Fruit sugar (Chem.), a kind of sugar
occurring, naturally formed, in many ripe fruits, and in honey;
levulose. The name is also, though rarely, applied to invert sugar, or
to the natural mixture or dextrose and levulose resembling it, and
found in fruits and honey. -- Fruit tree (Hort.), a tree cultivated for
its edible fruit. -- Fruit worm (Zoˆl.), one of numerous species of
insect larvÊ: which live in the interior of fruit. They are mostly
small species of Lepidoptera and Diptera. -- Small fruits (Hort.),
currants, raspberries, strawberries, etc.
Fruit (?), v. i. To bear fruit. Chesterfield.
Fruit"age (?), n. [F. fruitage.] 1. Fruit, collectively; fruit, in
general; fruitery.
The trees . . . ambrosial fruitage bear.
Milton.