aubergine

A1U1B3E1R1G2I1N1E1
UK/ˈəʊ.bə.ʒiːn/US/ˈoʊ.bɚ.ʒin/South Asia/ɔbə(r).(d)ʒin/

noun

An Asian plant, Solanum melongena, cultivated for its edible purple, green, or white ovoid fruit; eggplant.

Similar
the list at eggplanteggplantbrinjaleggplant bushgarden eggmad appleSolanum melongena
OriginFrench aubergine ← Catalan albergínia ← Arabic اَلْبَاذِنْجَان (al-bāḏinjān) →
UncommonScrabble 12
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Meanings

nounaubergine (countable and uncountable, plural aubergines)

plural aubergines

  1. IrelandUKcountableuncountableAn Asian plant, Solanum melongena, cultivated for its edible purple, green, or white ovoid fruit; eggplant.
  2. IrelandUKcountableuncountableThe fruit of this plant, eaten as a vegetable.

    The hot and sour curry is an aubergine version of a south Indian fish curry I often make. […] You barbecue a few aubergines until the skin is completely black and burned, then cool and peel.

    2013 August 2, Stevie Parle, “A meat cheat? Recipes with aubergine”, in The Daily Telegraph, London: Telegraph Media Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 19 Aug 2019
  3. countableuncountableA dark purple colour; eggplant.

Synonyms & antonyms

Similar
the list at eggplant

nounhairy upright herb native to southeastern Asia but widely cultivated for its large glossy edible fruit commonly used as a vegetable

Similar
eggplantbrinjaleggplant bushgarden eggmad appleSolanum melongena
Broader
herbherbaceous plant

nounegg-shaped vegetable having a shiny skin typically dark purple but occasionally white or yellow

Similar
eggplantmad apple
Broader
solanaceous vegetable
Also see
brinjaleggplantgarden eggmad apple

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Proto-Dravidian*waẓVtV
  2. Sanskritवातिङ्गण (vātiṅgaṇa)
  3. Classical Persianبَاذِنْگَان (bāzingān)
  4. Arabicاَلْبَاذِنْجَان (al-bāḏinjān)
  5. Catalanalbergínia
  6. Frenchaubergine
  7. Englishaubergine

Unadapted borrowing from French aubergine, from Catalan albergínia, from Arabic اَلْبَاذِنْجَان (al-bāḏinjān, “the aubergine”), from Classical Persian بَادِنْجَان (bādinjān), from بَاتِنْگَان (bātingān), from Sanskrit वातिङ्गण (vātiṅgaṇa, “the plant that cures the wind”), from Dravidian, ultimately from Proto-Dravidian *waẓVtV. Cognate with Malayalam വഴുതനങ്ങ (vaḻutanaṅṅa), Hindi बैंगन (baiṅgan). Doublet of brinjal, malidzano, and melongene.

More words from French, Catalan, Arabic

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bengali বেগুন
  • বেগুন (begun)a dark purple colour
Chinese Mandarin 茄紫色, 紅紫色 /红紫色
  • 茄紫色 (qiézǐsè)a dark purple colour
  • 紅紫色 /红紫色 (hóngzǐsè)a dark purple colour
Dutch aubergine
  • auberginea dark purple colour
Greek μελιτζανί
  • μελιτζανί (melitzaní)a dark purple colour
Hindi बैंगनी
  • बैंगनी (baiṅgnī)a dark purple colour
Malay terung ungu
  • terung ungua dark purple colour
Persian بادنجانی
  • بادنجانی (bâdanjâni)a dark purple colour
Polish bakłażan, oberżyna
  • bakłażanedible fruit
  • oberżynaedible fruit
  • kolor bakłażanowya dark purple colour
  • bakłażanplant
  • oberżynaplant
Russian тёмнофиолетовый, баклажа́новый
  • тёмнофиолетовый (tjómnofioletovyj)a dark purple colour
  • баклажа́новый (baklažánovyj)a dark purple colour
Urdu بینگنی
  • بینگنی (baiṅganī)a dark purple colour
Cite this entry
APA

aubergine. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/aubergine

MLA

“aubergine.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/aubergine. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “aubergine,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/aubergine.

Source: aubergine on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.