▪ I. prunello
(pruːˈnɛləʊ)
Also 7, 9 prunella, 8 -elle, 9 -elloe.
[Altered from obs. It. prunella ‘any kind of little plumbe or Prune’ (Florio), dim. of pruna (mod. prugna) plum, prune. Cf. F. prunelle (-ele c 1270 in Godef. Compl.) a sloe.]
† a. Name for a variety of plum or prune, fresh or dried. Obs. b. The finest kind of prunes or dried plums, made from the greengage and other varieties.
| 1616 Bullokar Eng. Expos., Prunellas, a fruite like small Figges, good for restoratiue, and to comfort the heart. 1622 Fletcher Sea Voy. iii. i, Nor julips, Nor guaiacums, prunellos, camphire pills,..come not near your old woman. 1662 J. Davies tr. Mandelslo's Trav. ii. (1669) 120 The fruit at first is green..a little bitter, like our Prunelloes. 1712 tr. Pomet's Hist. Drugs I. 168 We sell abundance of Prunes and Prunelles, as the Large and the Small. 1741 Compl. Fam.-Piece i. iii. 239 Lay them drying till they be as dry as Prunello's. 1786 Sir J. E. Smith in Mem. (1832) I. 195 Dined at Brignolle, famous for the Prunes de Brignolle, which we have corrupted into Prunellas. 1812 J. Smyth Pract. of Customs (1821) 185 Prunelloes are a sort of French Prunes, of which large quantities are annually gathered in Provence. 1895 Syd. Soc. Lex., Prunelloe, a popular name for the Prunum brignolense. |
▪ II. prunello
variant of prunella1.