落花生(らっかせい)

らっかせい
noun
peanut; groundnut
foodnature
1. peanut; groundnut
A legume plant whose seed pods ripen underground, widely eaten roasted, boiled, or processed into oil and butter.
落花生(らっかせい)を殻(から)から出(だ)す。
To shell peanuts.
千葉県(ちばけん)は落花生(らっかせい)の産地(さんち)として有名(ゆうめい)だ。
Chiba Prefecture is famous as a peanut-producing region.
落花生(らっかせい)アレルギーがあるので、食(た)べる前(まえ)に成分(せいぶん)を確認(かくにん)している。
Since I have a peanut allergy, I check the ingredients before eating.

The formal, standard Japanese word for peanut. The name literally means 'fallen flower born' (落(らく) fall + 花(か) flower + 生(せい) born), referring to how the flower stalk bends down after pollination so the pods develop underground.

Common collocations

Similar words

  • ピーナッツ: the loanword form, more casual and common in everyday speech
  • 南京豆(なんきんまめ): an older name for peanut, now less common

Cultural note

千葉県(ちばけん) produces about 80% of Japan's domestic peanuts. Freshly harvested boiled peanuts (茹(ゆ)で落花生(らっかせい)) are a seasonal delicacy in autumn.

Related Words

Compare: ピーナッツ (the loanword form, more casual…)
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Added 2026.4.1 23:16 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:02
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