ole

1 of 4

adjective

informal
: old
reminiscing about the good ole days
had a grand ole time
saw a big ole snake
… "That ole devil still living?"Mildred D. Taylor
… an ole workin man …George Bernard Shaw
… new uses for the good ole potato.Sheila O'Meara Lowenstein
… he didn't lose because of little ole me.Matt Gurney
… the ole switcheroo, a technique whereby a jeweller will replace his infinitesimally smaller rock for your larger one.Elle
… what Robb has done for Democrats is win something. And not just any ole something: Virginia.George F. Will

olé

2 of 4

noun

ole-

3 of 4

combining form

variants or oleo-
: oil
oleograph

-ole

4 of 4

noun combining form

variants or less commonly -ol
1
: chemical compound containing a 5-membered usually heterocyclic ring
pyrrole
2
: chemical compound not containing hydroxyl
eucalyptol
especially in names of ethers
safrole

Examples of ole in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
These chips would blow you away in a big ole skillet cookie, or perhaps a warm chocolate bread pudding. Sam Stone, Bon Appétit, 6 Mar. 2024 The good ole days of Southern Charm being a boys club are over. Taylor Crumpton, Essence, 19 Jan. 2024 Some of our picks include beauty picks and a big ole comforter from Buffy. Angela Trakoshis, Allure, 15 Nov. 2022 Describing morning coffee, school drop-offs, and evening television, Sánchez and Bezos sound like any ole middle-class family. Bychloe Berger, Fortune, 14 Nov. 2023 And there’s nothing like some good ‘ole authentic Italian food — such as Rossoblu — that will do just the trick. Kimberly Wilson, Essence, 16 Sep. 2023 Laughter brings the best kind of levity to life, and what better way to bring it on than with a good ole corny joke? Jill Gleeson, Country Living, 29 Aug. 2023 Avatar: The Way of Water | Official Trailer Watch on For some reason, in the 13 years between Avatar films, James Cameron built up a big ole group of doubters. Evan Romano, Men's Health, 4 Aug. 2023 Mickey Wreath $20 at Walmart Disney may love a good ole fashioned happy ending, but Halloween is our favorite villains' times to shine. Hannah Jones, Country Living, 14 July 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ole.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

by alteration

Noun

Spanish

Combining form

French olé-, oléo-, from Latin ole-, from oleum — more at oil

Noun combining form

International Scientific Vocabulary, from Latin oleum

First Known Use

Adjective

circa 1832, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1922, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of ole was circa 1832

Dictionary Entries Near ole

Cite this Entry

“Ole.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ole. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

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