/ pʌlp; NAmE / noun , verb , adjective
■ noun
1.
[ sing. , U ] a soft wet substance that is made especially by crushing sth :
Cook the fruit gently until it forms a pulp.
His face had been beaten to a pulp (= very badly beaten) .
2.
[ U ] a soft substance that is made by crushing wood, cloth or other material and then used to make paper :
paper / wood pulp
3.
[ U ] the soft part inside some fruit and vegetables
SYN flesh
► pulpy adjective :
Cook the fruit slowly until soft and pulpy.
■ verb
[ vn ] to crush or beat sth so that it becomes soft and wet :
Unsold copies of the novel had to be pulped.
pulped fruit
■ adjective
[ only before noun ] ( of books, magazines, etc. ) badly written and often intended to shock people :
pulp fiction
••
WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English (denoting the soft fleshy part of fruit): from Latin pulpa . The verb dates from the mid 17th cent.