essential oil

noun

: any of a class of volatile oils that give plants their characteristic odors and are used especially in perfumes and flavorings, and for aromatherapy compare fixed oil

Examples of essential oil in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Guests can also try the Kneipp path, a hydrotherapy treatment that involves alternating hot and cold water, and experience the traditional Finnish Aufguss ritual, where water or ice infused with essential oils is poured over hot stones, releasing aromatic steam for detoxification purposes. —Andrea Onate, Footwear News, 6 Feb. 2026

The treatment rooms are large, with private bathrooms, and feature body rituals performed with essential oils, lavender and sweet orange, and an Ayurvedic soundtrack of Indian chanting capable of transporting you to another dimension like a mantra of pure well-being. —Maddalena Fossati, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Feb. 2026

Kidder says if scent is the goal, then a few drops of essential oil mixed into baking soda works well. —Ashlyn Needham, The Spruce, 5 Feb. 2026

It’s formulated with rosemary, mint, biotin, jojoba oil, and other essential oils for a fresh scent and impactful strengthening and growth. —Olivia Dubyak, InStyle, 1 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1674, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for essential oil

• aerofoil
• cinquefoil
• hydrofoil
• quatrefoil
• airfoil
• benzoyl
• despoil
• embroil
• etoile
• gargoyle
• recoil
• subsoil

Medical Definition

essential oil

noun

: any of a large class of volatile odoriferous oils of vegetable origin that give plants their characteristic odors and often other properties, that are obtained from various parts of the plants (as flowers, leaves, or bark) by steam distillation, expression, or extraction, that are usually mixtures of compounds (as aldehydes or esters), and that are used often in the form of essences in perfumes, flavorings, and pharmaceutical preparations

called also ethereal oil, volatile oil

compare fatty oil, fixed oil