peanut

noun

pea·nut | \ ˈpē-(ˌ)nət

Definition of peanut

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : a low-branching widely cultivated annual herb (Arachis hypogaea) of the legume family with showy yellow flowers having a peduncle which elongates and bends into the soil where the ovary ripens into a pod containing one to three oily edible seeds also : its seed or seed-containing pod

2 : an insignificant or tiny person

3 peanuts plural : a trifling amount

4 : a pellet usually made of polystyrene foam that is used especially as packing material

peanut

adjective

Definition of peanut (Entry 2 of 2)

: insignificant, petty peanut politics

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Examples of peanut in a Sentence

Noun

Five billion dollars is peanuts compared to what the government spends each year. He works all day for peanuts.

Adjective

this is a peanut matter, and we're fools for wasting time on it

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Plus, the crunch of the peanuts paired with the lusciously smooth caramel is a satisfying flavor explosion for any sweet-tooth. — Hannah Chubb, PEOPLE.com, "PEOPLE Food Awards 2019: The Best New Grocery Store Ice Creams of the Year," 3 July 2019 Add the peanuts, and cook, tossing occasionally, until toasted and fragrant. — Ben Mims, latimes.com, "Grilled Rib-Eye Steak with Pistachio Gremolata and Charred Balsamic Broccolini," 26 June 2019 The Houston rapper, 28, collaborated with General Mills for a limited-edition box of the peanut buttery breakfast treat that flew off the shelves. — Cydney Henderson, USA TODAY, "Travis Scott's custom Reese’s Puffs cereal box collaboration sold out in 30 seconds," 25 June 2019 So in 2017, the library started to offer a simple afternoon snack each afternoon, normally a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, to students who stopped by after school. — Sean Mcdonnell - Special To Cleveland.com, cleveland.com, "Medina Library helps hungry kids with snacks," 13 June 2019 To begin with, products that look very similar—different jars of peanut butter, for instance—tend to be placed side by side on the shelves. — Natasha Frost, Quartz, "How do Amazon Go stores work?," 5 June 2019 Visitors at the festival in Reno could sample a peanut butter and pickle pilsner, a tamale lager and a smoked carrot stout. — Dee-ann Durbin, The Denver Post, "As craft beer market grows, so do wild flavors like Wynkoop’s Rocky Mountain Oyster Stout," 5 June 2019 The issue prompted a years-long campaign to get Southwest Airlines to stop handing out peanuts on its flights, a demand that carrier complied with last summer. — Kate Gibson, CBS News, "Whole Foods recalls pesto in 5 states due to undeclared nuts," 6 June 2019 Gerl includes peanuts in his salsa macha but also adds almonds and seeds: sesame, pumpkin and sunflower. — Providence Cicero, The Seattle Times, "Chester Gerl’s versatile, crunchy salsa macha is so much more than a chip dip," 2 Jan. 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

Caramel-Cookie Butter Icebox Pie is a playful variation on an old Texas favorite, peanut butter pie. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "Old-fashioned icebox pies are easy and delicious," 4 June 2019 Early estimates of losses to the peanut crop range from $10 million to $20 million. — Jeff Martin, The Seattle Times, "Farmers fear it will take years to recover from storm strike," 30 Oct. 2018 Cotton, pecan and peanut crops were lost in Georgia, and one million power customers were offline Thursday in Florida, Alabama, Georgia, the Carolinas and Virginia, according to reports from local utilities. — Jon Kamp And Arian Campo-flores, WSJ, "Michael Blasts Deadly Path Across Several Southern States," 11 Oct. 2018 In The Bitter Southerner, James Beard-award winning writer Shane Mitchell offers a history of and paean to this most versatile and nutritional of ground nuts and to the region where it’s grown, correcting a few peanut myths along the way. — Michelle Weber, Longreads, "Goodness, How Delicious, Eating Goober Peas," 2 May 2018 Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk together peanut butter, soy sauce, lime juice, brown sugar, and remaining sesame oil, ginger, and garlic. — Woman's Day Kitchen, Woman's Day, "Asian Noodles and Meatballs," 16 Aug. 2018 This may help explain why peanut allergies are more common in Western countries, where the nuts are often roasted (part of the process of making peanut butter), than in Asian nations where raw or boiled peanuts are more common. — Amber Dance, Washington Post, "Peanut allergy is one of the most severe food allergies. New therapies might help.," 12 May 2018 The double dose of peanuts in the form of whole nuts and peanut butter means these bars are really filling, even in small portions. — Becky Krystal, charlotteobserver, "These five-ingredient, 10-minute peanut bars will be your new afternoon pick-me-up | Charlotte Observer," 3 Apr. 2018 The military has long disqualified recruits for a broad range of medical conditions that could impact performance, including bad knees, heel spurs, diabetes and even peanut allergies. — New York Times, "Sergeant Sues Defense Dept. Over ‘Outdated’ H.I.V. Policies," 31 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'peanut.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Dictionary Entries near peanut

Statistics for peanut

Last Updated

8 Jul 2019

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Time Traveler for peanut

The first known use of peanut was in 1802

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More Definitions for peanut

peanut

noun

English Language Learners Definition of peanut

: a nut with a thin shell that grows under the ground and that can be eaten

informal : a very small amount of money

See the full definition for peanut in the English Language Learners Dictionary

peanut

noun

pea·nut | \ ˈpē-ˌnət

Kids Definition of peanut

: a nutlike edible seed related to the pea that comes from the tough underground pods of a widely grown plant and that are eaten whole or crushed to form a spread ( peanut butter ) or produce oil for cooking ( peanut oil )