Dictionary entry

Gourd

Webster's Dictionary 1913

Gourd (?), n. [F. gourde, OF. cougourde, gouhourde, fr. L. cucurbita gourd (cf. NPr. cougourdo); perh. akin to corbin basket, E. corb. Cf. Cucurbite.] 1. (Bot.) A fleshy, three-celled, many-seeded fruit, as the melon, pumpkin, cucumber, etc., of the order Cucurbitaceæ; and especially the bottle gourd (Lagenaria vulgaris) which occurs in a great variety of forms, and, when the interior part is removed, serves for bottles, dippers, cups, and other dishes.

2. A dipper or other vessel made from the shell of a gourd; hence, a drinking vessel; a bottle. Chaucer.

Bitter gourd, colocynth.