can any body tell me why a tomatoe is classed as a fruit not a vegetable?

i am aware of the changes regarding the european commission, and that they are sort of the powers that be,with regard to what we eat and how we term it, but from been a lad a tomatoe was always a vegetable, has any one got any views on this? and would you agree with me, that it should remain a veg.

Answers:
Cuz ppl are retarded....lol...there should be an exception made for this one fruit and it SHOULD be considered a vegetable, being that it has more in common (for usage, taste etc) with vegetables than with fruits.

Other answers:
It's because of where the seeds are.
It's because of where the seeds are.
i believe because it grows on a vine
because its got seeds
I think it's because it has seeds. I think that anything with seeds is a fruit, no seeds a vegetable. Vegetables usually ARE seeds, like corn and peas
because it has seeds

i agree
because it is grown above ground i think, and has seeds in it????
Seeds on the inside.
its a technicality i don't mind, but i have heard it is a fruit because it has seeds.
The confusion about 'fruit' and 'vegetable' arises because of the differences in usage between scientists and cooks. Scientifically speaking, a tomato is definitely a fruit. True fruits are developed from the ovary in the base of the flower, and contain the seeds of the plant (though cultivated forms may be seedless). Blueberries, raspberries, and oranges are true fruits, and so are many kinds of nut. Some plants have a soft part which supports the seeds and is also called a 'fruit', though it is not developed from the ovary: the strawberry is an example. As far as cooking is concerned, some things which are strictly fruits may be called 'vegetables' because they are used in savoury rather than sweet cooking. The tomato, though technically a fruit, is often used as a vegetable, and a bean pod is also technically a fruit. The term 'vegetable' is more generally used of other edible parts of plants, such as cabbage leaves, celery stalks, and potato tubers, which are not strictly the fruit of the plant from which they come. Occasionally the term 'fruit' may be used to refer to a part of a plant which is not a fruit, but which is used in sweet cooking: rhubarb, for example. So a tomato is the fruit of the tomato plant, but can be used as a vegetable in cooking.
"The confusion about 'fruit' and 'vegetable' arises because of the differences in usage between scientists and cooks. Scientifically speaking, a tomato is definitely a fruit. True fruits are developed from the ovary in the base of the flower, and contain the seeds of the plant (though cultivated forms may be seedless). Blueberries, raspberries, and oranges are true fruits, and so are many kinds of nut. Some plants have a soft part which supports the seeds and is also called a 'fruit', though it is not developed from the ovary: the strawberry is an example. As far as cooking is concerned, some things which are strictly fruits may be called 'vegetables' because they are used in savoury rather than sweet cooking. The tomato, though technically a fruit, is often used as a vegetable, and a bean pod is also technically a fruit. The term 'vegetable' is more generally used of other edible parts of plants, such as cabbage leaves, celery stalks, and potato tubers, which are not strictly the fruit of the plant from which they come. Occasionally the term 'fruit' may be used to refer to a part of a plant which is not a fruit, but which is used in sweet cooking: rhubarb, for example. So a tomato is the fruit of the tomato plant, but can be used as a vegetable in cooking."

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