: a tropical American tree (Carica papaya of the family Caricaceae, the papaya family) having an oblong to globose yellow edible fruit with numerous black seeds in a central cavity
also
: its fruit
Examples of papaya in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Expect green papaya salad, glass noodle soup, curries, pad see ew and those rich, savory boat noodles with sliced pork.
—
Brock Keeling, Oc Register, 5 Feb. 2026
The cars’ papaya and black liveries have been hand-painted, and Norris and Piastri each have their signatures emblazoned on the cars, along with the locations of each win, pole position, and fastest lap in the 2025 F1 season.
—Erik Shilling, Robb Report, 4 Feb. 2026
The on-site farm yields a variety of fruits, vegetables, and herbs—from several different types of tomatoes to wing beans, lemon cucumber, Hawaiian papaya, and romaine lettuce.
—Lydia Price, Travel + Leisure, 1 Feb. 2026
And mango, papaya, avocado, poke, and açaí bowls become the staples of my diet.
—Jen Murphy, Outside, 1 Feb. 2026
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Brock Keeling, Oc Register, 5 Feb. 2026
The cars’ papaya and black liveries have been hand-painted, and Norris and Piastri each have their signatures emblazoned on the cars, along with the locations of each win, pole position, and fastest lap in the 2025 F1 season.
—Erik Shilling, Robb Report, 4 Feb. 2026
The on-site farm yields a variety of fruits, vegetables, and herbs—from several different types of tomatoes to wing beans, lemon cucumber, Hawaiian papaya, and romaine lettuce.
—Lydia Price, Travel + Leisure, 1 Feb. 2026
And mango, papaya, avocado, poke, and açaí bowls become the staples of my diet.
—Jen Murphy, Outside, 1 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for papaya
Cite this Entry
“Papaya.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/papaya. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
papaya
noun
pa·pa·ya
pə-ˈpī-ə 
: an oblong edible yellow fruit with many black seeds that grows on a tropical American tree with large leaves
also
: the tree
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