oil
Americannoun
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any of a large class of substances typically unctuous, viscous, combustible, liquid at ordinary temperatures, and soluble in ether or alcohol but not in water: used for anointing, perfuming, lubricating, illuminating, heating, etc.
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a substance of this or similar consistency.
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refined or crude petroleum.
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Painting.
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Informal. unctuous hypocrisy; flattery.
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an oilskin garment.
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Australian and New Zealand Slang. facts or news; information.
good oil.
verb (used with object)
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to smear, lubricate, or supply with oil.
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to bribe.
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to make unctuous or smooth.
to oil his words.
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to convert into oil by melting, as butter.
adjective
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pertaining to or resembling oil.
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using oil, especially as a fuel.
an oil furnace.
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concerned with the production or use of oil.
an offshore oil rig.
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made with oil.
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obtained from oil.
idioms
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pour oil on troubled waters, to attempt to calm a difficult or tense situation, as an argument.
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strike oil,
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to discover oil, especially to bring in a well.
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to have good luck, especially financially; make an important and valuable discovery.
They struck oil only after years of market research.
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noun
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any of a number of viscous liquids with a smooth sticky feel. They are usually flammable, insoluble in water, soluble in organic solvents, and are obtained from plants and animals, from mineral deposits, and by synthesis. They are used as lubricants, fuels, perfumes, foodstuffs, and raw materials for chemicals See also essential oil fixed oil
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another name for petroleum
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( as modifier )
an oil engine
an oil rig
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Also called: lubricating oil. any of a number of substances usually derived from petroleum and used for lubrication
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( in combination )
an oilcan
an oilstone
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( as modifier )
an oil pump
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Also called: fuel oil. a petroleum product used as a fuel in domestic heating, industrial furnaces, marine engines, etc
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paraffin, esp when used as a domestic fuel
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( as modifier )
an oil lamp
an oil stove
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any substance of a consistency resembling that of oil
oil of vitriol
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the solvent, usually linseed oil, with which pigments are mixed to make artists' paints
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(often plural) oil colour or paint
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( as modifier )
an oil painting
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an oil painting
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slang facts or news
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to discover petroleum while drilling for it
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informal to become very rich or successful
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verb
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to lubricate, smear, polish, etc, with oil or an oily substance
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informal to bribe (esp in the phrase oil someone's palm )
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to make things run smoothly
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See well-oiled
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Any of a large class of viscous liquids that are typically very slippery and greasy. Oils are composed mostly of glycerides. They are flammable, do not mix with water, and include animal and vegetable fats as well as substances of mineral or synthetic origin. They are used in food, soap, and candles, and make good lubricants and fuels.
Other Word Forms
- oil-like adjective
- oilless adjective
- oillessness noun
- oillike adjective
- reoil verb
- self-oiling adjective
- unoiling adjective
Etymology
Origin of oil
1125–75; Middle English olie, oile < Old French < Latin oleum, olīvum (olive) oil < *oleivum ( Deus ) < dialectal Greek *élaiwon ( Attic élaion ), derivative of *elaíwā olive
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Gasoil is a crude-oil derivative, commonly known as diesel oil, used for agricultural machinery, ships and railways, making it a crucial industrial fuel.
From MarketWatch
The question is how high could oil go in the case of a sustained conflict.
From MarketWatch
War in the Middle East has triggered a sharp risk-off reaction across markets at the start of the week, with equity indices sliding, while gold, oil and the U.S. dollar are rising.
From MarketWatch
And 35 years ago, oil prices had their biggest single-day drop in history just after coalition forces began bombing Saddam Hussein’s military—a conflict affecting at least three major crude exporters.
U.S. crude oil prices averaged about $65 a barrel last year, a boon to American drivers who were able to fill up their tanks for cheap, even as prices of coffee and ground beef surged.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
