Question

whats the difference among :
1) lime (calcium oxide)
2) lemon
3) lime juice

just seeking to knw the difference in usage/dictionary meaning and if they all 3 terms are connected in anyway... plz help....

Answer 1

lime (CaO) and lime (the fruit) is an example of convergence in linguistics, where two words with entirely different origins and meanings come to have the same sound or spelling. (Another famous example is "cleave" meaning to split, as in "cleave this diamond," and "cleave" meaning hold on to, as in "cleave to this idea.")

The word for the substance comes from Latin "limus" meaning slime or mud, related to Latin words for smearing, and refers to the use by the Romans of lime in making mortar, which is smeared between bricks to stick them together. (This is still the largest industrial use of lime.)

On the other hand, the word for the fruit comes from the Persian "limun" meaning lemon. So the two words come from entirely different languages, and passed into English at very different times (the word for CaO was part of Old English, while the word for the fruit was part of Middle English).

"Lemon" of course comes directly from the Persian word also.

I'm assuming you already know the chemical differences, of course.

Answer 2

thanks a lot that cleared up all my confusion xD