grease

noun \ ˈgrēs \

|Updated on: 19 Aug 2018

Examples: grease in a Sentence

Definition of grease

1 a : rendered animal fat

b : oily matter

c : a thick lubricant

2 : wool as it comes from the sheep retaining the natural oils or fats

—

greaseless

play \ˈgrēs-ləs\ adjective

—

greaseproof

play \ˈgrēs-ˈprüf\ adjective

— in the grease

of wool or fur : in the natural uncleaned condition

See grease defined for English-language learners

See grease defined for kids

Recent Examples of grease from the Web

Go ahead: Drink your coffee, eat your pizza, climb your StairMaster because no grease or sweat is making this gloss fade.

— samantha sasso, refinery29.com, "The Under-$20 Lip Gloss That Makes Me Feel Like A 2000s Pop Star," 7 July 2018
In the park's most recent permit, the state increased or completely removed limits for several pollutants, including chlorine, oil and grease, and total suspended solids (solids in water that can be trapped by a filter), The Star found.

— kelsey ryan, kansascity, "Worlds of Fun was sued for polluting. Then Missouri loosened its pollutant limits," 6 July 2018
If there was a patent recipe for predictable results, then surely more of us would volunteer for a life of manure, tractor grease and overalls.

— forrest pritchard, WSJ, "‘The New Farm’ and ‘Fruitful Labor’ Reviews: Betting the Farm on Organic," 13 Apr. 2018
To say that hot grease and warm Miller Lite runs through his veins wouldn't be an exaggeration.

— craig hlavaty, Houston Chronicle, "The Texican's rodeo wish list," 21 Feb. 2018
So why would a museum put a rancid piece of grease and diapers on display?

— jason daley, Smithsonian, "Monster Fatberg Goes On Display at London Museum," 13 Feb. 2018
The roll was slightly crackly on the outside and soft on the inside, soaking up grease and cheese.

— alex delany, Bon Appetit, "I Ate at 16 of the Best Philly Cheesesteak Spots in 12 Hours," 3 Jan. 2018
Acetic acid, the main ingredient in vinegar, will work to dissolve any lingering mineral deposits, grease and soap scum that's dulling the glass.

— woman's day staff, Woman's Day, "12 Extraordinarily Handy Uses for White Vinegar," 14 Mar. 2017
It couldn't be masked by the old-fashioned pepperoni slices that curl up into delectable little grease cups.

— mark kurlyandchik, Detroit Free Press, "Restaurant Review: Detroit's Empire Kitchen & Cocktails has no clothes," 12 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'grease.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of grease

Middle English grese, from Anglo-French gresse, greisse, creisse, from Vulgar Latin *crassia, from Latin crassus fat

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 13th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

grease

verb \ ˈgrēs , ˈgrēz \

Definition of grease

greased; greasing

transitive verb

1 : to smear or daub with grease

2 : to lubricate with grease

3 : to soil with grease

4 : to hasten the process or progress of; also : facilitate

— grease the hand of or grease the palm of

: bribe

See grease defined for English-language learners

Examples of grease in a Sentence

Grease the pan before you put the cake batter in.
make sure you grease the pan before you put the batter in

Recent Examples of grease from the Web

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and lightly grease the parchment.

— noelle carter, charlotteobserver, "Grilling burgers this summer? Up your game with these homemade bun recipes," 6 July 2018
Lightly grease a large bowl with oil and transfer dough to bowl, turning to coat; cover with plastic wrap and let stand in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

— hannah walhout, Smithsonian, "Forget Baguettes — Why In-the-Know Bread Lovers Should be Heading to the Caucasus (Recipe)," 5 July 2018
So when approaching a stranger, a smile can grease the social wheels of the interaction and help the other person feel at ease.

— samuel putnam, Washington Post, "Russians don’t smile much, but that doesn’t mean they don’t like you," 30 June 2018
Lightly grease Bundt pan and lay in strips of bacon, allowing excess to overhang the edge and central tube.

— San Antonio Express-News, "Recipe: Bacon-Wrapped Bundt Pan Meatloaf," 20 June 2018
They can be cooked in a grill pan on the stove top as well; grease the pan with cooking oil spray and cook over medium heat.

— bonnie s. benwick, charlotteobserver, "Spicy, smoky, cheesy, melty burgers — on the inside," 19 June 2018
Workers will grease the lift span counterweight cables and perform maintenance on joints between deck sections on the east approach to the bridge, according to a recent release from Multnomah County.

— rosemarie stein, OregonLive.com, "Portland Metro Friday Traffic: Maintenance closes the Hawthorne Bridge to all users on Sunday," 11 May 2018
Expanding to 32 in 1998 greased the transition to Havelange’s No. 2, Sepp Blatter.

— mark zeigler, sandiegouniontribune.com, "The World Cup works fine with 32 teams, but FIFA is about to ruin it," 13 July 2018
Whatever efforts Cohen made to grease the skids did not work.

— callum borchers, Washington Post, "AT&T’s $600,000 payment to Michael Cohen looks like wasted money," 11 May 2018

First Known Use of grease

14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

grease Synonyms

Phrases

pave the way (for);

GREASE Defined for English Language Learners

grease

noun

Definition of grease for English Language Learners

: melted animal fat
: an oily substance

grease

verb

Definition of grease for English Language Learners

: to put a thin layer of grease or oil on (something)

GREASE Defined for Kids

grease

noun \ ˈgrēs \

Definition of grease for Students

1 : a substance obtained from animal fat by melting

2 : oily material

3 : a thick lubricant

grease

verb \ ˈgrēs , ˈgrēz \

Definition of grease for Students

greased; greasing

: to coat or lubricate with an oily material

Learn More about grease

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for grease Spanish Central: Translation of grease Nglish: Translation of grease for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of grease for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about grease

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up grease? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show

grease

Definition of grease

greaseless

greaseproof

Recent Examples of grease from the Web

Origin and Etymology of grease

grease

Definition of grease

Examples of grease in a Sentence

Recent Examples of grease from the Web

First Known Use of grease

grease Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Near Antonyms

Related Words

Phrases

Phrases Related to GREASE

Related Phrases

GREASE Defined for English Language Learners

grease

Definition of grease for English Language Learners

grease

Definition of grease for English Language Learners

GREASE Defined for Kids

grease

Definition of grease for Students

grease

Definition of grease for Students

Learn More about grease

Seen and Heard

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games

The Good, The Bad, & The Semantically Imprecise - 8/17/2018

Difficult Spelling Words Quiz

9 Words for Places People Call "Home"

Trending: Brennan: Trump's Claims are 'Hogwash'

Ghost Word