calabash
UK[ˈkæləbæʃ]US[ˈkæləˌbæʃ]
n
A large gourd from a tropical American vine, or the hard shell of this fruit used as a container.
n
The bottle gourd plant (Lagenaria siceraria) or its fruit.
n
Any of various gourds or similar fruits, or objects made from them.
Etymology
The word 'calabash' entered English in the late 16th century from French 'calebasse', which itself was borrowed from Spanish 'calabaza'. The Spanish term likely has its origins in Persian 'kharbuz', meaning 'melon', which traveled through Arabic and possibly Mozarabic. The journey of the word traces the movement of the plant and its useful, hard-shelled fruit across cultures, from the Old World to the New World and back into European languages. The modern English term retains the name of the container, directly linking it to the natural object from which it is made.
Analysis
The word is a simplex loanword. It does not contain separable morphemes within its modern English spelling.
Examples
The water was carried in a hollowed-out calabash.
They served the traditional drink in a decorated calabash bowl.
The calabash vine grew rapidly over the trellis.