Are tomatoes fruits?

A tomato's ripened ovary and seeds are contained together inside itself, thereby making it a fruit. Other fruits that are often mistaken for botanical vegetables include cucumbers, squash and peppers.

In the United States, a tomato is legally considered a vegetable based on the public perception of it as a vegetable. In the late 1800s, the U.S. Supreme Court gave the tomato this legal definition because of a case involving tariffs on fruits and vegetables. The court ruled that because a tomato is commonly known as a vegetable, that is how the fruit should be legally defined for the public.