goobers
Peanuts. Southern talk for the boiled or roasted kind.
Also called goober, goober peas, pindars.
Updated September 21, 2026
goobers pronunciation
/GOO-berz/
Meaning
Goobers are peanuts, full stop. Say it at a ballgame, a boil, or a country store and nobody wonders what you mean. Singular goober or goober pea works too. Later slang borrowed the word for a silly person, but on a redneck porch the food sense still comes first.
How folks use it
- “Pass them boiled goobers before they're gone.”
- “We cracked goobers on the porch all evening.”
Origin and etymology
Southern U.S. word from African languages, especially Kikongo or Kimbundu nguba for peanut. Enslaved Africans brought the crop name into American English by the early 1800s (spellings like gouber show up around 1833). Peanuts themselves rode a long route from South America through Africa. Related Southern form: pindar.
Frequently asked questions
Are goobers only boiled peanuts?
No. Boiled, roasted, or raw, they are still goobers. Boiled ones just get the most porch praise.