Grape
/ɡreɪp/noun
A small, round fruit that grows in clusters on a vine, especially used for eating or making wine.
Did you know?English grape comes through Old French from a Latin word that originally meant the vine’s fruit, and its deeper history is tied to the same plant that powered ancient wine rites across the Mediterranean.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*ghrebʰ-
“to seize, grasp”
Latin
Latin
*vitis vinifera / uva
“grape, vine fruit”
Late Latin
Latin
*crappa
“cluster of grapes, bunch”
Old French
Old French
grappe
“bunch, cluster of grapes”
Middle English
English
grape
“a cluster or berry of the vine”
Modern English
English
grape
“the fruit of the grapevine”