From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Currant \Cur"rant\ (k?r"rant), n. [F. corinthe (raisins de
Corinthe raisins of Corinth) currant (in sense 1), from the
city of Corinth in Greece, whence, probably, the small dried
grape (1) was first imported, the Ribes fruit (2) receiving
the name from its resemblance to that grape.]
[1913 Webster]
1. A small kind of seedless raisin, imported from the Levant,
chiefly from Zante and Cephalonia; -- used in cookery.
[1913 Webster]
2. The acid fruit or berry of the {Ribes rubrum} or common
red currant, or of its variety, the white currant.
[1913 Webster]
3. (Bot.) A shrub or bush of several species of the genus
{Ribes} (a genus also including the gooseberry); esp., the
{Ribes rubrum}.
[1913 Webster]
{Black currant},a shrub or bush ({Ribes nigrum} and {Ribes
floridum}) and its black, strong-flavored, tonic fruit.
{Cherry currant}, a variety of the red currant, having a
strong, symmetrical bush and a very large berry.
{Currant borer} (Zool.), the larva of an insect that bores
into the pith and kills currant bushes; specif., the
larvae of a small clearwing moth ({[AE]geria
tipuliformis}) and a longicorn beetle ({Psenocerus
supernotatus}).
{Currant worm} (Zool.), an insect larva which eats the leaves
or fruit of the currant. The most injurious are the
currant sawfly ({Nematus ventricosus}), introduced from
Europe, and the spanworm ({Eufitchia ribearia}). The fruit
worms are the larva of a fly ({Epochra Canadensis}), and a
spanworm ({Eupithecia}).
{Flowering currant}, {Missouri currant}, a species of {Ribes}
({Ribes aureum}), having showy yellow flowers.
[1913 Webster]
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
currant
n 1: any of several tart red or black berries used primarily for
jellies and jams
2: any of various deciduous shrubs of the genus Ribes bearing
currants [syn: {currant}, {currant bush}]
3: small dried seedless raisin grown in the Mediterranean region
and California; used in cooking
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