melon

noun

mel·​on ˈme-lən 

plural melons

often attributive

1

: any of various typically sweet gourds (such as a muskmelon or watermelon) usually eaten raw as fruits

2

: something rounded like a melon: such as

a

: a rounded organ in the front of the head of some cetaceans and all toothed whales that is composed of lipids and waxy material and is thought to be utilized in echolocation

b

: a person's head

A great afternoon at the park usually meant coming home with blisters on our hands, a bump or two on the melon and the obligatory skinned knee.

—Robb Moretti

3

a

: a surplus of profits available for distribution to stockholders

b

: a financial windfall

Examples of melon in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

It’s packed with skin-soothing tiger grass, brightening licorice root, and nourishing Kalahari melon oil—and was made specifically with melanin-rich skin in mind. —Christa Joanna Lee, Glamour, 25 Apr. 2025

Before a small crowd of Gallo’s rank and file officers, Fisk placed the commish’s melon between his meaty palms, squeeeeeeezed…. —Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine, 15 Apr. 2025

Guatemala also ships melons, plantains and papayas, USDA said, while Costa Rica exports pineapples, avocados and mangoes. —Jonathan Limehouse, USA Today, 6 Apr. 2025

Elsewhere, gawp at Patty Chang greedily gobbling a melon standing in for her breast in her seminal 1998 video Melons (At a Loss) and the bloodthirsty mermaids swimming through Jen Liu’s 2023 video The Land at the Bottom of the Sea. —Lisa Wong MacAbasco, Vogue, 31 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Middle French, from Late Latin melon-, melo, short for Latin melopepon-, melopepo, from Greek mēlopepōn, from mēlon apple + pepōn, an edible gourd — more at pumpkin

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing melon

• honeydew melon
• melon baller
• winter melon

Rhymes for melon

• felon
• snellen
• tellin
• endothelin
• gibberellin
• watermelon
• muskmelon

Kids Definition

melon

noun

mel·​on ˈmel-ən 

: any of various fruits (as a cantaloupe, honeydew melon, or watermelon) of the gourd family that have juicy and usually sweet flesh eaten raw and a firm rind