Chinese scarlet eggplant; tomato-fruit eggplant
Refers to the plant Solanum integrifolium, an ornamental eggplant with small tomato-like fruits. Not commonly eaten.
An older or literary name for the common tomato (Solanum lycopersicum). In modern Japanese, トマト is overwhelmingly more common.
See also: トマト
I planted Chinese scarlet eggplants in the garden and grow them for ornamental purposes.
In the past, tomatoes were sometimes called 赤茄子.
Eggplant in general. 赤茄子 specifically refers to red-fruited varieties, either the ornamental scarlet eggplant or the tomato.
Standard kanji spelling for this plant name.
Compound of 赤 (aka, 'red') + 茄子 (nasu, 'eggplant'), literally 'red eggplant'. The name reflects the red, tomato-like fruits of the plants it refers to.