Banana is an edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus Musa. In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called plantains, distinguishing them from dessert bananas. The fruit is variable in size, color and firmness, but is usually elongated and curved, with soft flesh rich in starch covered with a rind which may be green, yellow, red, purple, or brown when ripe.

The name "banana" is derived from the Spanish verb to peck, which means to pierce or break with the tip of a sharp knife. The verb is from the root verbiano, which means to cut or split.

The fruit is variable in size, color and firmness, but is usually elongated and curved, with soft flesh rich in starch covered with a rind which may be green, yellow, red, purple, or brown when ripe.

The name "banana" is derived from the Spanish verb to peck, which means to pierce or break with the tip of a sharp knife. The verb is from the root verbiano, which means to cut or split.