Frutta

Frutta is the Italian word for fruit, referring to the edible products of flowering plants. In Italian usage, frutta usually means fresh fruit eaten as a snack or as part of a meal, while frutti is the plural in some contexts and frutta secca denotes dried fruit. The term covers foods that are typically sweet or tart and consumed for flavor or nutrition.

Common categories include citrus fruits such as arance and limoni; pomes like mele and pere; stone fruits such as ciliegie, pesche, albicocche, and prugne; berries such as fragole, lamponi, and mirtilli; and tropical fruits such as banane, ananas, mango, and kiwi. Frutta is eaten fresh, pressed into juice, or used in desserts, jams, fruit salads, and some regional savory dishes.

Nutrition: Fruits are rich in vitamins (notably vitamin C), minerals, fiber, and antioxidants. They are naturally low in fat and contain sugars of natural origin. Regular consumption of fruit is encouraged as part of a balanced diet, with attention to portion size and variety. Proper storage, ripening, and seasonal availability affect taste and texture.

Etymology: The word frutta derives from Latin fructus, meaning fruit or produce. In modern Italian, frutta is commonly treated as an uncountable mass noun, while frutti is used in some contexts such as fruit assortments or dried fruit (frutta secca).