apple of Sodom
apple of Sod·om
-ˈsädəm
1
a
: a fruit described by ancient writers as externally of fair appearance but dissolving into smoke and ashes when plucked
called also Dead Sea apple
b
: an empty mockery
had seen the fruits of victory turn into apples of Sodom
R. M. Lovett
R. M. Lovett2
a
: the small yellow tomatolike fruit of a prickly shrub (Solanum sodomeum)
b
: a spiny herb (Solanum carolinense) that bears yellow and orange berries
Word History
Etymology
from Sodom, biblical city destroyed by God (Genesis 10)