Fruit Names
From everyday apples to spiky rambutans, the world grows an astonishing range of fruit. This page lists more than 100 fruit names, grouped by type with a quick note on each — handy for kids’ vocabulary lessons, trivia, word games or a menu. Toward the end you’ll also find fruit names that double as sweet baby and pet names.
Botanically, a fruit is the seed-bearing part of a flowering plant, so some foods we call vegetables (tomatoes, cucumbers) technically count. We’ve stuck to fruits people eat as fruit. For more from the garden, see our herb names, plant names and names of flowers.
Common fruit names
The fruits you’ll find in almost any American grocery store.
| Fruit | Type | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Apple | Pome | Thousands of varieties, from Gala to Honeycrisp |
| Banana | Berry (botanically) | The most-eaten fruit in the US |
| Orange | Citrus | Most are grown for juice |
| Grape | Berry | Eaten fresh, dried as raisins or made into wine |
| Strawberry | Aggregate accessory fruit | The seeds are on the outside |
| Pear | Pome | Ripens best off the tree |
| Peach | Drupe (stone fruit) | Fuzzy skin; the Georgia state fruit |
| Watermelon | Pepo (gourd family) | About 92% water |
| Pineapple | Multiple fruit | Made of many fused berries |
| Cherry | Drupe | Sweet and sour (tart) types |
| Plum | Drupe | Dried plums are prunes |
| Lemon | Citrus | Very acidic, high in vitamin C |
| Lime | Citrus | Key limes are small and aromatic |
| Cantaloupe | Melon | Orange flesh, netted rind |
| Honeydew | Melon | Pale green, very sweet |
| Blueberry | Berry | Native to North America |
| Avocado | Berry (single seed) | Rich in healthy fats |
| Nectarine | Drupe | A smooth-skinned peach |
| Apricot | Drupe | Often eaten dried |
| Tomato | Berry | A fruit botanically, used as a vegetable |
| Kiwi | Berry | Native to China; renamed after New Zealand’s national bird |
Tropical and exotic fruit names
Fruits from hot climates, many now easy to find in Asian and Latin American markets.
| Fruit | Where it grows | What it’s like |
|---|---|---|
| Mango | South Asia, now worldwide | Juicy, sweet; national fruit of India |
| Papaya | Central America | Soft orange flesh, black seeds |
| Guava | Tropical Americas | Fragrant, pink or white flesh |
| Passion fruit | South America | Tart pulp full of crunchy seeds |
| Lychee | Southern China | Floral, translucent white flesh |
| Rambutan | Southeast Asia | Hairy red skin, lychee-like inside |
| Longan | Southern China | “Dragon eye”; small and sweet |
| Mangosteen | Southeast Asia | “Queen of fruits”; soft white segments |
| Durian | Southeast Asia | Famously pungent “king of fruits” |
| Jackfruit | South and Southeast Asia | Largest tree fruit; used as a meat substitute |
| Dragon fruit | Central America, Vietnam | Pitaya; bright pink skin, speckled flesh |
| Starfruit | Southeast Asia | Carambola; star-shaped slices |
| Soursop | Tropical Americas | Guanábana; creamy, tangy |
| Cherimoya | Andes | “Custard apple”; creamy sweet flesh |
| Kiwano | Africa | Horned melon with green jelly inside |
| Feijoa | South America | Pineapple guava; popular in New Zealand |
| Tamarind | Tropical Africa | Sour-sweet pods used in sauces |
| Coconut | Tropical coasts | A drupe, not a nut |
| Breadfruit | Pacific Islands | Starchy, cooked like potato |
| Salak | Indonesia | Snake fruit, with scaly brown skin |
| Sapodilla | Central America | Brown-sugar flavor |
| Pineberry | Hybrid strawberry | White with red seeds |
Berry names
Some of these are true berries botanically, others are aggregate fruits — but we all call them berries.
| Fruit | Color | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Raspberry | Red | Hollow center when picked |
| Blackberry | Black-purple | Grows on thorny brambles |
| Cranberry | Red | Grown in flooded bogs |
| Gooseberry | Green to red | Tart; classic in British desserts |
| Elderberry | Dark purple | Must be cooked before eating |
| Boysenberry | Deep maroon | Raspberry-blackberry cross |
| Huckleberry | Blue to black | Wild in the Pacific Northwest |
| Mulberry | Black, red or white | Silkworms eat the leaves |
| Currant | Red, black or white | Tiny and tart |
| Lingonberry | Red | Nordic favorite with meatballs |
| Cloudberry | Amber | Arctic berry pictured on Finland’s €2 coin |
| Loganberry | Dark red | Accidental cross from California |
| Goji berry | Orange-red | Usually sold dried |
| Acai | Deep purple | Amazon palm berry |
| Salmonberry | Orange to red | Wild Pacific berry |
| Serviceberry | Purple | Also called juneberry or saskatoon |
Citrus fruit names
Zesty fruits from the rue family, many of them ancient hybrids.
| Fruit | Flavor | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Grapefruit | Bitter-sweet | Born in Barbados in the 1700s |
| Clementine | Sweet | Seedless mandarin type |
| Mandarin | Sweet | One of the original citrus species |
| Tangerine | Sweet-tart | Named after Tangier, Morocco |
| Kumquat | Tart flesh, sweet peel | Eaten whole, skin and all |
| Yuzu | Aromatic, sour | Prized in Japanese cooking |
| Pomelo | Mild, sweet | The largest citrus fruit |
| Blood orange | Berry-like | Red flesh from anthocyanins |
| Bergamot | Floral, bitter | Flavors Earl Grey tea |
| Calamansi | Very sour | Philippine lime |
| Citron | Mostly peel | Used for candied peel; the etrog of Sukkot |
| Ugli fruit | Sweet-tangy | Jamaican tangelo |
| Satsuma | Sweet | Easy-peel Japanese mandarin |
| Finger lime | Tart pearls | “Citrus caviar” from Australia |
Other and old-fashioned fruit names
Orchard classics and lesser-known fruits worth discovering.
| Fruit | Type | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Fig | Syconium | Actually an inverted flower |
| Pomegranate | Berry | Hundreds of juicy seeds (arils) |
| Persimmon | Berry | Honey-sweet when fully ripe |
| Quince | Pome | Too hard to eat raw; great in jam |
| Medlar | Pome | Eaten when “bletted” (soft and brown) |
| Date | Drupe | Grows on date palms |
| Olive | Drupe | Cured before eating |
| Loquat | Pome | Small orange fruit from China |
| Pawpaw | Berry | Largest native fruit in North America |
| Jujube | Drupe | “Chinese date” |
| Damson | Drupe | Small, tart plum |
| Greengage | Drupe | Sweet green plum |
| Sloe | Drupe | Blackthorn fruit, used in sloe gin |
| Jabuticaba | Berry | Brazilian grape-like fruit that grows straight on the trunk |
| Rhubarb | Stalk (vegetable, eaten as fruit) | Treated as a fruit in the US since 1947 for tariffs |
Fruit names that work as baby names
Fruit names are a gentle, playful naming trend. See nature names for girls and unique baby names for more.
| Name | Fruit link | Name origin / meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Cerise | Cherry | French word for cherry |
| Mela | Apple | Italian word for apple |
| Oliver | Olive tree | Latin oliva, via Old French |
| Olivia | Olive tree | Coined or popularized by Shakespeare in Twelfth Night |
| Berry | Berry | English word name; also surname |
| Peaches | Peach | Vintage nickname |
| Pomona | All fruit | Roman goddess of fruit trees and orchards |
| Mora | Blackberry | Spanish for blackberry |
| Ringo | Apple | Japanese word for apple (ringo) |
| Tamar | Date palm | Hebrew name meaning date palm |
| Momo | Peach | Japanese momo, “peach” |
| Anzu | Apricot | Japanese for apricot |
| Anar | Pomegranate | Persian word for pomegranate |
| Rimon | Pomegranate | Hebrew word for pomegranate |
Using fruit names: tips for parents, teachers and writers
- For kids learning vocabulary, start with the common fruits, then add one exotic fruit per week and taste it together.
- For baby names, choose a fruit with a name history (Cerise, Tamar, Pomona) — it feels less like a nickname and more like a name.
- For pets, match the color: Mango for a golden dog, Plum for a dark cat, Kiwi for a green parakeet. Our pet names and bird names pages have more.
- For word games, remember that A-to-Z fruit lists are easy for most letters but tricky for X (ximenia) and Z (ziziphus, the jujube genus).
- Check the botany. Tomatoes, avocados and cucumbers are fruits scientifically; rhubarb is a vegetable we eat as fruit.
Frequently asked questions
What are the 10 most common fruits?
Apples, bananas, oranges, grapes, strawberries, watermelons, pears, peaches, pineapples and blueberries are among the most widely eaten fruits in the US.
What fruit starts with the letter X?
Ximenia (sea lemon) is a small African and Asian fruit. Xigua is a Chinese name for watermelon. X is the rarest letter for fruit names.
What is the rarest fruit in the world?
Candidates include the Yubari King melon, jabuticaba and certain wild durians; rare really depends on where you live.
Is a tomato a fruit?
Yes, botanically. It develops from the flower and holds seeds. In cooking and US law (Nix v. Hedden, 1893) it is treated as a vegetable.
What are cute fruit names for a baby girl?
Cerise, Olivia, Mela, Pomona, Mora, Momo and Tamar are fruit-linked names with real histories as given names.