| 释义 |
pea·nut
I. \ˈpē(ˌ)nət, usu -əd.+V\ noun
Etymology: pea (I) + nut
1.
a. : a low branching annual herb (Arachis hypogaea) that has slightly hairy stems, bijugate leaves, and showy yellow flowers initially sessile but with a hypanthium which elongates and bends into the soil where the ovary ripens into a reticulated usually constricted indehiscent pod containing one to three edible seeds and that is prob. native to Brazil but is cultivated in most tropical and many mild temperate regions for its oily seeds and as forage
b. : the seed of the peanut either enclosed in its papery husk and outer pod or freed from these — see peanut butter, peanut oil
2. : flax 3
3. : an insignificant, petty, or tiny person
< shows a lot of strength for such a peanut >
— often used disparagingly
4. peanuts plural
a. : something small, inconsequential, or of little value
< the rush of westward traffic was peanuts to what the roads will be handling late this summer — Time >
< total volume of business … is so small that I used to call it peanuts — W.M.Mason >
b. : a very petty sum of money usually in comparison to the total amount involved
< compared to present prices … I was getting peanuts — John Lardner >
< persuading big names to appear for peanuts in his productions — Al Hine >
II. adjective
: characterized by smallness or insignificance : mean, petty
< peanut politicians — New Republic >
< no time for congress to be dawdling over peanut legislation — Newsweek >
< I haven't got all day for this peanut case — Douglass Welch >
III. noun
: a pellet made of usually polystyrene foam and used chiefly as packing material |