karela

K5A1R1E1L1A1

noun

Momordica charantia, the bitter melon or bitter gourd.

OriginHindi करेला ← Sanskrit कारवेल्ल →
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Meanings

nounkarela (countable and uncountable, plural karelas)

plural karelas

  1. IndiacountableuncountableMomordica charantia, the bitter melon or bitter gourd.

    Though unpleasantly bitter, karela tops the list of diabetes-friendly foods.

    2006, Tarla Dalal, Diabetic Snacks, page 22
    2 more examples

    The roofs shall fade before it, The house-beams shall fall, And the Karela, the bitter Karela, Shall cover it all!

    1895, Rudyard Kipling, The Second Jungle Book

    Cut karelas into thin slices. Wash and rub two table spoons salt all over the karelas and its scrapings.

    1998, Sanjeev Kapoor, Khazana of Indian Recipes

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see
bitter melon

Origin

  1. Sanskritकारवेल्ल
  2. Hindiकरेला
  3. Englishkarela

From Hindi करेला (karelā), from Sanskrit कारवेल्ल (kāravella).

More words from Hindi, Sanskrit

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Kerala
Cite this entry
APA

karela. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/karela

MLA

“karela.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/karela. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “karela,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/karela.

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