A tree (
Carica Papaya) of tropical America, belonging to the order
Passifloreæ; called also
papaw and
pawpaw. It has a soft, spongy stem, eighteen or twenty feet high, crowned with a tuft of large, long-stalked, palmately lobed leaves. The milky juice of the plant is said to have the property of making meat tender. [
1913 Webster]