1. A deciduous shrub or small tree (Punica granatum) native to Asia and widely cultivated for its edible fruit.
2. The fruit of this tree, having a tough reddish rind, and containing many seeds, each enclosed in a juicy, mildly acidic, red pulp.

[Middle English pome granate, from Old French pome grenate : pome, apple; see pome + grenate, having many seeds (from Latin grānātus , from grānum, grain, seed).]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.