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

Unfortunately, no chemical products or natural essential oils have been found to repel bed bugs. —Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 23 Jan. 2026

Innogear Essential Oil Diffuser This essential oil diffuser instantly fills your bathroom with invigorating scents, such as lavender or eucalyptus, turning every bath and shower into a relaxing experience. —Sian Babish, PEOPLE, 22 Jan. 2026

While you might be inclined to take the less humane route to keep mice out—stocking up on traps, glues, essential oils, and other expensive (and often gruesome) killers—there are plenty of natural ways to repel mice worth trying, too. —Kylie McConville, The Spruce, 21 Jan. 2026

Add two drops of your favorite essential oil, like lavender, to create a scented playdough. —Sherri Gordon, Parents, 20 Jan. 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