cantaloupe

[kan-tl-ohp] /ˈkæn tlˌoʊp/

noun

a variety of melon, Cucumis melo cantalupensis, of the gourd family, having a hard scaly or warty rind, grown in Europe, Asia, and the United States.

a muskmelon having a reticulated rind and pale-orange flesh.

Also, cantaloup.

Origin

1730-40; < French, allegedly after Cantaluppi, a papal estate near Rome where cultivation of this melon is said to have begun in Europe, though a comparable It word is not attested until much later than the French word, and Cantaloup, a village in Languedoc, has also been proposed as the source

Examples from the web for cantaloupe

Listeria-linked cantaloupe farm had rated high in audit.
Lettuce is abundant in the winter and cantaloupe is plentiful in the late summer.
The hookah menu features such varieties as vanilla, double apple and cantaloupe.
Dad's out on the golf course, swinging an extra-long driver with a head the size of a cantaloupe.
In the company of such cuts, the filet mignon seems almost lean, except that it's the size of a cantaloupe.
So he puts two little biscotti in my lunchbox for some munching, two pieces of chocolate, and usually some cantaloupe as well.
Watermelon and cantaloupe pickles and relishes, preserves and jellies, and iced tea.
She served cantaloupe soup, poached rainbow trout and strawberries with sour cream.
Information and resources on cantaloupe statistics.
Volatile and quality changes in fresh-cut cantaloupe and honeydew melons stored in modified atmosphere packaging.

British Dictionary definitions for cantaloupe

cantaloupe

/ˈkæntəˌluːp/

noun

a cultivated variety of muskmelon, Cucumis melo cantalupensis, with ribbed warty rind and orange flesh

any of several other muskmelons

Word Origin

C18: from French, from Cantaluppi, former papal villa near Rome, where it was first cultivated in Europe

Word Origin and History for cantaloupe

also cantaloup, 1739, from French, from Italian, from Cantalupo, name of a former Papal summer estate near Rome, where the melons first were grown in Europe after their introduction (supposedly from Armenia). The place name seems to be "singing wolf" and might refer to a spot where wolves gathered, but this might be folk etymology.