Ba*na"na (?), n. [Sp. banana, name of the fruit.] Bot.
A perennial herbaceous plant of almost treelike size (Musa sapientum); also, its edible fruit. See Musa.
⇒ The banana has a soft, herbaceous stalk, with leaves of great length and breadth. The flowers grow in bunches, covered with a sheath of a green or purple color; the fruit is five or six inches long, and over an inch in diameter; the pulp is soft, and of a luscious taste, and is eaten either raw or cooked. This plant is a native of tropical countries, and furnishes an important article of food.
Banana bird Zool., a small American bird (Icterus leucopteryx), which feeds on the banana. -- Banana quit Zool., a small bird of tropical America, of the genus Certhiola, allied to the creepers.
© Webster 1913.