Hypertext Webster Gateway: "quince"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Quince \Quince\, n. [Prob. a pl. from OE. quyne, coin, OF. coin,
cooin, F. coing, from L. Cydonius a quince tree, as adj.,
Cydonian, Gr. ? Cydonian, ? ? a quince, fr. ? Cydonia, a city
in Crete, ? the Cydonians. Cf. {Quiddany}.]
1. The fruit of a shrub ({Cydonia vulgaris}) belonging to the
same tribe as the apple. It somewhat resembles an apple,
but differs in having many seeds in each carpel. It has
hard flesh of high flavor, but very acid, and is largely
used for marmalade, jelly, and preserves.
2. (Bot.) a quince tree or shrub.
{Japan quince} (Bot.), an Eastern Asiatic shrub ({Cydonia},
formerly {Pyrus, Japonica}) and its very fragrant but
inedible fruit. The shrub has very showy flowers, usually
red, but sometimes pink or white, and is much grown for
ornament.
{Quince curculio} (Zo["o]l.), a small gray and yellow
curculio ({Conotrachelus crat[ae]gi}) whose larva lives in
quinces.
{Quince tree} (Bot.), the small tree ({Cydonia vulgaris})
which produces the quince.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
quince
n 1: small Asian tree with pinkish flowers and pear-shaped fruit;
widely cultivated [syn: {quince bush}, {Cydonia oblonga}]
2: aromatic acid-tasting pear-shaped fruit used in preserves
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