butter

verb

buttered; buttering; butters

transitive verb

: to spread with or as if with butter

Examples of butter in a Sentence

butter a piece of bread

Recent Examples on the Web

Grand Hyatt’s bread is buttered with business travelers, and the wide desks and plentiful power outlets around the room confirm that this outpost is a prime example of that. —Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 14 May 2026

The Cranberries were four humble Irish kids bred and buttered on the outskirts of Limerick. —Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 23 Apr. 2026

Your bread must be liberally buttered. —Eric Koreen, New York Times, 21 Apr. 2026

Event organizers know where their ancient bread is buttered, too, with IV only offering a $40,000 prize pool. —Jon Martindale, PC Magazine, 10 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing butter

• apple butter
• bread-and-butter
• butter-and-eggs
• butter bean
• butter clam
• butter cookie
• butter knife
• butter lettuce
• butter up
• butter wouldn't melt in someone's mouth
• cacao butter
• cocoa butter
• drawn butter
• head-butter
• like a (hot) knife through butter
• peanut butter
• shea butter

Rhymes for butter

• clutter
• cutter
• flutter
• gutter
• mutter
• nutter
• putter
• rutter
• shutter
• sputter
• stutter
• utter

Kids Definition

butter

1 of 2 noun

but·​ter ˈbət-ər 

1

: a solid yellow fatty food made by churning milk or cream

2

: a substance resembling butter in texture or use

apple butter

buttery

-ə-rē

adjective

butter

2 of 2 verb

: to spread with or as if with butter

Etymology

Old English butere "butter," from Latin butyrum (same meaning), from Greek boutyron, from bous "ox, cow" and tyros "cheese" — related to buffalo

Medical Definition

butter

noun

but·​ter ˈbət-ər 

1

: a solid emulsion of fat globules, air, and water made by churning milk or cream and used as food

2

: a buttery substance

especially : any of various fatty oils remaining nearly solid at ordinary temperatures