44 Spanish Fruits and Spanish Fruit Names – A Yummy Guide!

---

Is it me or are you also craving fruits in Spanish? Yes, in Spanish specifically. Spanish seems to make everything tastier.

Let me prove it to you. Here are some Spanish fruit names:

• “passion fruit” in Spanish: la chinola
• “dragon fruit” in Spanish: la fruta del dragón
• “dates” in Spanish: los dátiles
• “berries” in Spanish: las bayas
• “nectarine” in Spanish: la nectarina
• “peach” in Spanish: la pesca
• “pineapple” in Spanish: la piña
• “apple” in Spanish: la manzana

Does this yummy list not convince you? Let me give you another reason to learn Spanish fruit names, then.

When I learn a new language, I always make sure to pick up food vocabulary first. The last thing I would want when travelling in a new country is to lose exploration time because I can’t explain that I’m hungry and what I want.

And also… Discovering good food is one of the best reasons to be a traveller.

I wrote a post some time ago on Spanish food and traditional Spanish dishes. You should check it out if Spain is your next destination.

Since I have a bit of a sweet tooth, fruit names are some of my favourite words to learn. If you’re like me, you are going to love this post! I’ve even included a delicious bonus, so make sure to stick around until the end.

You wouldn’t want to miss out on three amazing (and easy) Hispanic fruit-based recipes!

Now, forks out, friends! We’re diving into a tasty lesson.

¡Vamos! (“Let’s go!”)

The Word “Fruit” in Spanish: Fruta

The word for “fruit” in Spanish is fruta. It’s a feminine word, so you will use it with la, las and una, unas: la fruta, una fruta. There’s an exception for referring to dried fruit, but we’ll talk about this later.

Before I start to amaze you with Spanish fruit names, I want to make sure you know an important fact.

When you read this post, keep in mind that Spanish is the official language in 21 countries around the world and that many other countries know it as a secondary language. So in the same way that not all Hispanic regions use the same Spanish dialect and accent, they don’t necessarily use the same words to describe the same fruits either.

Don’t worry! I will give you several alternatives for those special fruits. Knowing which ones are used in the dialect you’ll need is just a question of listening and practising!

Spanish Fruit Names – Fruits That You’ll Find in Spanish Markets

We’ve agreed on the fact that different Hispanic regions may have different names for the same fruit. You also need to remember that the type of fruits you can find depends on the area where you find yourself. (Even if globalization has helped change this a little.)

Here is a list of fruits you might find easily on a Spanish market. Learn how to say:

• “peach” in Spanish: el melocotón or el durazno
• “apricot” in Spanish: el albaricoque or el damasco
• “nectarine” in Spanish: la nectarina
• “watermelon” in Spanish: la sandía
• “apple” in Spanish: la manzana
• “pear” in Spanish: la pera
• “plum” in Spanish: la ciruela
• “cherry” in Spanish: la cereza
• “banana” in Spanish: el plátano, el guineo, or el kambur
• “orange” in Spanish: la naranja
• “lemon” in Spanish: el limón
• “lime” in Spanish: la lima
• “grapes” in Spanish: las uvas

Your Go-To List of Fruits in Spanish, But Make It Exotic

If you’re travelling to Latin America or Equatorial Guinea, there is a chance that the local people will use more tropical fruits than those I mentioned above.

Here’s a list that might come in handy in that case:

• “passion fruit” in Spanish: la chinola
• “dragon fruit” in Spanish: la fruta del dragón or la pitaya
• “jackfruit” in Spanish: la yaca or la jaca
• “mango” in Spanish: el mango
• “avocado” in Spanish: el aguacate
• “pineapple” in Spanish: la piña
• “cantaloupe” in Spanish: el melón cantaloupe
• “papaya” in Spanish: la papaya or la lechosa
• “coconut” in Spanish: el coco
• “starfruit” in Spanish: la carambola
• “soursop* in Spanish: la guanabana

Learn to Talk About Berries in Spanish

Here’s another must-know category of fruits to learn to talk about in Spanish – berries. Who wouldn’t want to know how to order a bowl of them?

Here’s how you say:

• “berries” in Spanish: las bayas
• “strawberry” in Spanish: la fresa or la frutilla
• “raspberry” in Spanish: la frambuesa
• “blueberries” in Spanish: el arándano
• “blackberries” in Spanish: las moras or las zarzamoras

How to Talk About Dried Fruits, Candied Fruits, and Nuts in Spanish

I couldn’t write a post on fruit and not include dried and candied fruit! I know they’re not everyone’s favourites, but some of them are too common not to be mentioned.

Now you’ll know how to say:

• “dried fruit” in Spanish: las frutas secas or las frutas deshidratadas (literally “dehydrated fruit”)
• “raisins” in Spanish: las pasas
• “dates” in Spanish: los dátiles
• “prunes” in Spanish: las ciruelas pasas
• “fig” in Spanish: el higo
• “candied fruit” in Spanish: las frutas confitadas
• “candied (fruit)* in Spanish: just add confitado or confitada after the fruit’s name

And now, a short list of nuts. After all, they’re considered fruits:

• “nuts” in Spanish: los frutos secos or la fruta seca
• “nut” in Spanish: la nuez
• “almond” in Spanish: la almendra
• “hazelnut” in Spanish: la avellana
• “pistachio” in Spanish: el pistacho
• “pine nut” in Spanish: el piñón
• “chestnut” in Spanish: la castaña
• “cashew” in Spanish: anacardo, cajú, or cajuil

Let’s Make a Fruit Salad in Spanish — Vocabulary Related to Fruits in Spanish

In Spanish, “fruit salad” is ensalada de frutas.

You’d never think about it at first, but there’s some useful vocabulary besides Spanish fruit names that you should learn.

By learning related vocabulary, you can make sure you’re as prepared as possible for conversations on the topic.

Three Verbs Related to Fruit in Spanish

The first of the verbs has to be comer (“to eat”). Here it is in the present tense:

The next two verbs are cortar (“to cut”) and pelar (“to peel”). They both conjugate in the same way:

Five Nouns Related to Fruits in Spanish

There are many nouns related to fruit, but I’ve gathered five of the main ones for you:

• trozo – “piece”
• semilla – “seed”
• piel (de fruta) – “(fruit) skin”
• jugo or zumo – “juice”
• postre – “dessert”

Let me know in the comments if you need any other ones!

Nine Adjectives to Describe Fruits in Spanish

Here are some adjectives you might want to use to describe fruit in Spanish:

• verde or inmaduro/a – “unripe”
• maduro/a – “ripe”
• agrio/a – “sour”
• dulce – “sweet”
• amargo/a – “bitter”
• delicioso/a – “delicious”
• bueno/a – “good”
• grande – “big”
• mediano/a – “medium”
• pequeño/a – “small”

Learn Some Fruit Idioms and Sayings in Spanish

Apart from learning food vocabulary, one of my favourite parts of language learning is to explore sayings. They’re often quite funny!

Here are five Spanish idioms and sayings based on fruits!

1. De Uvas a Peras — “Once in a Blue Moon”

The expression de uvas a peras literally translates to “from grapes to pears” in English. It refers to something that happens very rarely.

The reason behind the saying is simple and brilliant. Grapes are harvested in late September or early October, and pears towards the end of summer. Around eleven months pass between the two harvests, which led to the idiom.

2. Media Naranja — “Other Half (Soulmate)”

Media naranja, literally “a half-orange” in English, is what Hispanics call their significant other.

A media naranja is a person who perfectly matches your taste and character, someone you would consider to be your other half. When reunited with this person, you would be as whole as an entire orange.

Fun fact: Media in Spanish also means “sock” and naranja is the “orange” Spanish colour, which leads to occasional jokes and memes. My favourite consists of gifting an orange sock to your significant other.

3. Ponerse Como un Tomate — “Turn Beetroot Red”

Ponerse como un tomate can be vaguely translated in English to “to end up looking like a tomato”.

Tomatoes are usually represented in their red form, so you guess where this goes. Ponerse como un tomate basically means “to blush”.

4. Comerse el Coco — “To Be Overthinking”

Comerse el coco is Spanish for “to eat one’s coconut”… Which, I agree with you, doesn’t make much sense. In a less literal sense, it means “to be overthinking.”

There isn’t a good explanation of the phrase’s meaning, but I’ll tell you about one way it’s interpreted.

In the expression, coconuts represent one’s head because they are shaped quite like one. And you need to put a lot of effort into scrubbing a coconut to eat it.

In a way, the phrase resembles the French idiom se creuser la tête (“to dig one’s head”). It means something like “to rack one’s brains”.

Don’t confuse comerse el coco with comer el coco! Same expression, but different: notice how the verb isn’t reflexive. Comer el coco means trying to convince someone of something or of doing something.

5. Ser del Año de la Pera — “To Be Really Old”

If someone looks your outfit up and down today and tells you es del año de la pera (literally “it’s from the age of the pear”)… They’re not saying that it looks summer-y or colourful.

I hate to break it to you, but they’re actually saying how old fashioned it is. And not in a vintage way, more like a “downright outdated” way.

Funnily enough, even if the expression contains the word pera, it has nothing to do with the fruit. There are several explanations behind its meaning, and I’ll tell you about the two most popular ones.

The first one claims that ser del año de la pera somehow evolved from ser del año de la polca (“to be from the age of the polka”). The polka is a dance that was introduced in Spain in the 1800s by the Bohemian culture. Nowadays, referring to something coming from those times clearly means that we think it’s old.

Another explanation goes way back in the past. It claims that the expression refers to the Catalan bandolero (“bandit”) Perot Rocaguinarda. This outlaw went by the nickname La Pera simply because his name sounded similar. He lived in the 16th-17th century, so “being from the age of the pear” ties back to those times.

Sorry for your outfit.

Bonus: Three Hispanic Fruit-Based Recipes

Here’s the bonus I promised you! Three delicious Hispanic recipes are waiting for you down here.

Grab your fruits and cook away! Don't forget to throw the leftover fruit bits and pieces into a composting bin for a cleaner environment. 

Can I Compost It? is a great little app that tells you which things you can throw into the composter.

1. Tostones: Latin America’s Fried Unripe Plantains

Tostones are the Latin American replacement for fries.

For this recipe, you’ll need:

• 1 unripe plantain
• 3 cups of vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon of salt

First step: Peel the plantain and slice it up into 1-inch tall pieces.

Second step: Pour the oil in a frying pan and heat it up to 375 ° F. Place the slices in the oil and turn them over after 45 seconds – 1 minute. Repeat several times until slightly golden.

Third step: Get the slices out of the oil and place them on paper towels. Press each of them with the bottom of a glass to approximately 1/8 inch thickness.

Fourth step: Return the pressed plantains to the hot oil and cook them until they are golden brown and crisp.

Fifth step: Place them on paper towels to absorb the extra oil. Evenly sprinkle them with salt.

2. Merengón Colombiano: The Huge Colombian Meringue

The Merengón Colombiano is very popular in Colombia, especially around Bogota.

For this recipe, you’ll need:

• 5 egg whites
• Some lemon juice drops
• 1 cup of heavy cream
• 1 pinch of salt
• ½ cup of granulated sugar
• ¼ cup of powdered sugar
• ½ teaspoon of vanilla essence
• 1 pound of strawberries, sliced (can be substituted with other fruits)

First step: Take the eggs out the fridge for an hour before the beginning of preparation.

Second step: Preheat the oven to 375 ° F.

Third step: Separate the egg yolks from the whites. Mix the former with the salt in a bowl. Whisk vigorously.

Fourth step: Add the lemon juice to the mixture and keep whisking.

Fifth step: Add the granulated sugar without stopping the whisking until the mix looks shiny and properly snowy.

Sixth step: Form disks of the mix on a tray covered in baking paper. Put in the oven for one hour.

Eighth step:While the meringues are cooking, mix the vanilla with the powdered sugar and cream. Let sit in the fridge.

Ninth step: Once the meringues are out of the oven and have cooled down, set up the dessert. Take a layer of meringue, spread the cream and sugar mix on it, add the fresh fruits, and cover up with another meringue.

Tenth step: Keep them in the fridge until you serve them.

La Carlota Mexicana: Mexico’s Peach Dessert

La Carlota Mexicana is one of the sweetest desserts out there.

For this recipe, you’ll need:

• 4 packages of dry, plain biscuits
• 3 packages of “pure chocolate” biscuits (with chocolate filling)
• ½ can of Nestle Cream
• 1 can of syruped peach
• 1 can of condensed milk

First step: Blend the milk, the cream, the chocolate filling of the cookies, the milk or condensed milk until they form a sweet, homogeneous sauce.

Second step: Dunk the nature-flavoured in the sauce and place them in rows and columns in a dish for the oven.

Third step: Add the other biscuits on top of these, dunking them in the sauce first.

Fourth step: Repeat the process until you run out of biscuits.

Fifth step: Place the peach slices on top.

Sixth step: Keep in the refrigerator until ready to be served. Possibly over 6 hours.

Talk About Fruits in Spanish

It’s time for us to say goodbye! At least, it’s a sweet one…

I hope you liked reading this post about fruit as much as I liked writing it. 😜