Peanut
/ˈpiː.nʌt/noun
The edible seed of a leguminous plant that develops underground inside a pod.
Did you know?Peanuts belong to the bean family, and their pods mature underground through a process called geocarpy—literally, fruiting in the earth.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*písom
“The reconstructed ancient root associated with the pea or pea plant.”
Ancient Greek
Greek
písos
“Pea; a small edible legume.”
Classical Latin
Latin
pisum
“Pea, borrowed or inherited as the name of the legume.”
Old English
Old English
hnutu
“Nut; a hard-shelled edible seed or fruit.”
16th Century
English
pea
“The modern singular form that developed after speakers reanalyzed pease as plural.”
18th Century
English
peanut
“A compound name for the underground legume seed, combining pea with nut because of its appearance and edible kernel.”