What's the difference between a fruit and a vegetable?

Answer 1

In botany a fruit is the developed ovary of a seed-bearing plant. That would include apples, oranges, peapods, tomatoes, and even nuts. The term vegetable does not have a particular botanical meaning.

In a culinary definition, a vegetable is a part of a plant (which can be a stem, a root, a leaf or a fruit) that is generally served as an accompaniment to meat or fish or as part of the main part of a meal. Under that definition, some fruits are generally considered vegetables, like tomatoes or peapods, or greenbeans. Other fruits, usually the soft, sweet ones, are generally served as part of dessert or as an appetizer. There are certainly exceptions, because meats or fish may sometimes be flavored with fruits like lemon or orange, but we still consider those fruits. Nuts are botanically fruits, but we consider them a separate culinary category. Grains are parts of plants but not considered vegetables but also a category of their own. So fruit vs. vegetable vs. something else is not always completely clear-cut.

Answer 2

Definition Of Fruit Vs Vegetable

Answer 3

~*~Ask Dr. Dictionary, a feature of Dictionary.com, provides a succinct explanation:

A fruit is actually the sweet, ripened ovary or ovaries of a seed-bearing plant. A vegetable, in contrast, is an herbaceous plant cultivated for an edible part (seeds, roots, stems, leaves, bulbs, tubers, or nonsweet fruits). So, to be really nitpicky, a fruit could be a vegetable, but a vegetable could not be a fruit.

The Nutriquest team offers a similar answer, adding that most fruits are sweet because they contain a simple sugar called fructose, while most vegetables are less sweet because they have much less fructose. The sweetness of fruit encourages animals to eat it and thereby spread the seeds. The site also presents an interesting list of fruits that are often thought to be vegetables:

* tomatoes
* cucumbers
* squashes and zucchini
* avocados
* green, red, and yellow peppers
* peapods
* pumpkins

But hey, what about the nut? Well, according to our friends at The Straight Dope, a nut is actually a "a dry, one-seeded, usually oily fruit."

Potato potahto, tomato tomahto, let's call the whole thing off.

Answer 4

"A fruit is actually the sweet, ripened ovary or ovaries of a seed-bearing plant. A vegetable, in contrast, is an herbaceous plant cultivated for an edible part (seeds, roots, stems, leaves, bulbs, tubers, or nonsweet fruits). So, to be really nitpicky, a fruit could be a vegetable, but a vegetable could not be a fruit.
The Nutriquest team offers a similar answer, adding that most fruits are sweet because they contain a simple sugar called fructose, while most vegetables are less sweet because they have much less fructose. The sweetness of fruit encourages animals to eat it and thereby spread the seeds. The site also presents an interesting list of fruits that are often thought to be vegetables: "

tomatoes
cucumbers
squashes and zucchini
avocados
green, red, and yellow peppers
peapods
pumpkins
http://ask.yahoo.com/ask/20010411.html

Answer 5

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
What's the difference between a fruit and a vegetable?

Answer 6

Quick answer:
Fruit has seeds.
Vegetable doesn't.

Answer 7

fruit will ripen off the vine while vegetables are picked when ripe and start to deteriorate the moment they are picked. it is not a matter of seeds. lettuce comes from a seed. its not part of the edible plant though so we never see it at the grocery store.

Answer 8

It is really hard to tell. As far as I am concerned a tomato can be a vegetable instead of a fruit. I guess it has to do with genetic origins.

Answer 9

good question. i think its where they grow. i think fruits grow on trees and vines. while veggies come from the ground up sometimes even underground like potatoes. but don't take my word for it

Answer 10

Fruits have more natural sugar than vegetables.