Is the term "stone" commonly used and widely understood for all drupes? And would it be correct to describe a date without its seed as a stoneless date?

However, leaving collection later in the season allows for the olives to continue growing, ripen so that they become black, and so more oil can be pressed from them. The finest quality oil, as today, came from the first pressing and when the mash had the minimum number of stones in it.

Question

Is the term "stone" commonly used and widely understood for all drupes? And would it be correct to describe a date without its seed as a stoneless date?

However, leaving collection later in the season allows for the olives to continue growing, ripen so that they become black, and so more oil can be pressed from them. The finest quality oil, as today, came from the first pressing and when the mash had the minimum number of stones in it.

Answer

As a native speaker of American English, I would use the word "pit" for all of these. If you take the pit out, you have pitted olives, pitted dates, pitted cherries, etc. Some people use the term "stone fruit" to refer to drupes (I had to look that word up).

Calling a pit a "stone" seems very British. There may be Americans who call a peach pit a "peach stone," but it would sound pretentious to me coming from an American.

I hope that helps!

Answer

A date without seeds is called a "seedless" date. The word "stone" is usually used for peaches, apricots, plums and cherries. Sometimes, the stone of the cherry is also called a "pit."

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