gherkin

UK: /ˈgɜː^rkɪn/ US: /ˈgɝkɪn/ ,(gûr′kin)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

gher•kin /ˈgɜrkɪn/   n. [countable]

1. Plant Biology the small, immature fruit of a kind of cucumber, used in pickling to make a small pickle eaten as a snack.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

gher•kin  (gûr′kin), n. 

1. Plant Biology the small, immature fruit of a variety of cucumber, used in pickling.
2. Plant Biology Also called bur gherkin, West Indian gherkin. the small, spiny fruit of a tropical vine, Cucumis anguria, of the gourd family, used in pickling.
3. Plant Biology the plant yielding this fruit.
4. Food a small pickle, esp. one made from this fruit.

• Slavic; compare Polish ogórek, Czech okurka Persian
• Dutch gurken, plural of gurk (German Gurke)
• 1655–65

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

gherkin / ˈɡɜːkɪn/ noun

1. the immature fruit of any of various cucumbers, used for pickling
2. a tropical American cucurbitaceous climbing plant, Cucumis anguria
3. the small edible fruit of this plant

Etymology: 17th Century: from early modern Dutch agurkkijn, diminutive of gurk, from Slavonic, ultimately from Greek angourion