Etymology Map
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Pear

3 stages from Latin to English.

Today it means a sweet fruit, narrow at the stalk and wider at the base

Where does the word "pear" come from? It comes from Latin pirum, passing through Old English before entering English (1300s).

1
Stage 1 of 3
pirum
Latin · classical
"pear"
Pliny the Elder's Natural History lists dozens of named pear varieties grown in Italy
2
Stage 2 of 3
peru
Old English · medieval
"pear"
borrowed via West Germanic from a Vulgar Latin plural pira, taken as a singular
3
Stage 3 of 3
pear
English · 1300s
"pear fruit"
the Williams pear, known in America as the Bartlett, was raised in Berkshire in the 1700s
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Read the full story

Pear’s story begins in Latin: pirum meant “pear.” Pliny the Elder's Natural History lists dozens of named pear varieties grown in Italy. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old English as peru. Borrowed via West Germanic from a Vulgar Latin plural pira, taken as a singular. It reached English by 1300s as pear. The Williams pear, known in America as the Bartlett, was raised in Berkshire in the 1700s. Today, pear means a sweet fruit, narrow at the stalk and wider at the base.