# aubergine

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈəʊ.bə.ʒiːn/ · frequency rank #58,522

## Definitions
1. An Asian plant, Solanum melongena, cultivated for its edible purple, green, or white ovoid fruit; eggplant.
2. The fruit of this plant, eaten as a vegetable.
3. A dark purple colour; eggplant.

## Etymology
Unadapted borrowing from French aubergine, from Catalan albergínia, from Arabic اَلْبَاذِنْجَان (al-bāḏinjān, “the aubergine”), from Classical Persian بَادِنْجَان (bādinjān), from بَاتِنْگَان (bātingān), from Sanskrit वातिङ्गण (vātiṅgaṇa, “the plant that cures the wind”), from Dravidian, ultimately from Proto-Dravidian *waẓVtV. Cognate with Malayalam വഴുതനങ്ങ (vaḻutanaṅṅa), Hindi बैंगन (baiṅgan). Doublet of brinjal.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/aubergine