tomatillo

Where does the word "tomatillo" come from? It comes from Nahuatl tomatl, passing through Spanish before entering English (1900s).

Tomatillo’s story begins in Nahuatl: tomatl meant “a round, plump fruit.” The root word for a plump fruit encased in a papery husk. By 1700s, the word had taken hold in Spanish as tomatillo. Formed in Mexican Spanish by adding the diminutive '-illo' to distinguish it from the red tomato. It reached English by 1900s as tomatillo. Borrowed into English culinary usage for the tart green fruit used in salsa verde. Today, tomatillo means a small, tart green fruit encased in a papery husk, used to make salsa verde.

1. Stage 1 · Nahuatl · pre-1500s tomatl "a round, plump fruit", the root word for a plump fruit encased in a papery husk.
2. Stage 2 · Spanish · 1700s tomatillo "a small, husked green fruit", formed in Mexican Spanish by adding the diminutive '-illo' to distinguish it from the red tomato.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1900s tomatillo "a small, husked green fruit used in Mexican cooking", borrowed into English culinary usage for the tart green fruit used in salsa verde.