peanut

[pee-nuht, -nuh t] /ˈpiˌnʌt, -nət/
noun
1.
the pod or the enclosed edible seed of the plant, Arachis hypogaea, of the legume family: the pod is forced underground in growing, where it ripens.
2.
the plant itself.
3.
any small or insignificant person or thing.
4.
peanuts.
  1. Informal. a very small amount of money:
    working for peanuts.
  2. Slang. barbiturates.
  3. small pieces of Styrofoam used as a packing material.
adjective
5.
of or pertaining to the peanut or peanuts.
6.
made with or from peanuts.
7.
Informal. small, insignificant, or petty.
Origin
1790-1800, Americanism; pea1 + nut
Examples from the web for peanuts
  • Chocolate-covered peanuts meet chocolate-coated raisins in this easy and addictive candy.
  • Best with mango sliced on it, with coconut milk and crushed peanuts sprinkled over it.
  • Tenure is one reason why the best and the brightest work for peanuts.
  • In this country almonds and even peanuts in pesto have their fans.
  • In other words, the release is peanuts in comparison to the scale of the oil economy.
  • That's not peanuts, but there are plenty of ways to pay for it.
  • Believing that food slowed up the creative process, the producer limited their lunches to a snack of bananas and salted peanuts.
  • The few authoritarian regimes that are left around are peanuts.
  • He found that eating peanuts caused the squirrels to lose their fur.
  • peanuts from the drought-prone interior are an important export.
British Dictionary definitions for peanuts

peanuts

/ˈpiːˌnʌts/
noun
1.
(slang) a trifling amount of money

peanut

/ˈpiːˌnʌt/
noun
1.
  1. a leguminous plant, Arachis hypogaea, of tropical America: widely cultivated for its edible seeds. The seed pods are forced underground where they ripen See also hog peanut
  2. Also called goober, goober pea, (Brit) groundnut, (Brit) monkey nut. the edible nutlike seed of this plant, used for food and as a source of oil
See also peanuts
Word Origin and History for peanuts

peanut

n.

1807, earlier ground nut, ground pea (1769). The plant is native to S.America. Portuguese traders took peanuts from Brazil and Peru to Africa by 1502 and it is known to have been cultivated in Chekiang Province in China by 1573, probably arriving with Portuguese sailors who made stops in Brazil en route to the Orient. Peanut butter attested by 1892; peanut brittle is from 1894. Peanut gallery "topmost rows of a theater" is from 1874, American English; peanuts "trivial sum" is from 1934.

peanuts in Culture

“Peanuts” definition


A popular comic strip drawn by Charles M. Schulz. The world of Peanuts is populated by pint-sized versions of adults: perennial optimist and born loser Charlie Brown; bossy, loud-mouthed Lucy; gentle Linus with his security blanket; Schroeder, the brooding piano player; and many others.

Note: Perhaps the most popular character is the beagle Snoopy, Charlie Brown's dog, who is often accompanied by his feathered friend, Woodstock.
Slang definitions & phrases for peanuts

peanuts

noun

A small amount of money; a trivial sum; nickels and dimes: They got you working for peanuts (1934+)

Related Terms

that ain't hay


peanut

adjective

: a peanut operation

noun

A small or trivial person; something insignificant (1934+)