oleaginous
adjective
ole·ag·i·nous
ˌō-lē-ˈa-jə-nəs 
1
: resembling or having the properties of oil : oily
also
: containing or producing oil
2
: marked by an offensively ingratiating manner or quality
oleaginously
adverb
oleaginousness
noun
Did you know?
The oily oleaginous slipped into English via Middle French oleagineux, coming from Latin oleagineus, meaning "of an olive tree." Oleagineus itself is from Latin olea, meaning "olive tree," and ultimately from Greek elaia, meaning "olive." Oleaginous was at first used in a literal sense, as it still can be. An oleaginous substance is simply oily, and an oleaginous plant produces oil. The word took on its extended "ingratiating" sense in the 19th century.
Examples of oleaginous in a Sentence
the office manager greeted the corporate bigwigs with an oleaginous welcome that should have embarrassed him
Recent Examples on the Web
One defense, beginning in the late eighteen-hundreds, was flypaper, sheets of which were coated on one side with an oleaginous substance that lured flies, then permanently trapped them.
—
David Owen, The New Yorker, 27 July 2024
At any moment, the noodles might dissolve, the cheese topping burn, the dish collapse into a soggy, oleaginous mess.
—Isaac Butler, The New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2023
Trump cheapened the honor into near irrelevance by awarding it to Limbaugh, who died earlier this year, and then, on his way out the door in January, to two of his most oleaginous sycophants in Congress, Rep. Devin Nunes of California and Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio.
—Eric Zorn, chicagotribune.com, 22 Apr. 2021
Ted Cruz, the perennial front-runner, is smug and oleaginous—hated equally by his colleagues and the public.
—Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 26 Sep. 2022
The interludes make for juicy lampoons of that unfortunate Western export, oleaginous showbiz faux-intimacy.
—Peter Marks, Washington Post, 21 June 2022
The French state is represented effectively here by oleaginous High Commissioner De Roller (Magimel), a European long based in Tahiti.
—Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 May 2022
The latest incident of the Trump coterie casting new light on previously routine corruption in Washington came earlier this month, courtesy not of Trump himself, but of his oleaginous son-in-law.
—Casey Michel, The New Republic, 20 Apr. 2022
After tapping the oleaginous Gaetz, Biden said that crude from the Florida congressman could start flowing throughout the United States by the end of the week.
—Andy Borowitz, The New Yorker, 23 Nov. 2021
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David Owen, The New Yorker, 27 July 2024
At any moment, the noodles might dissolve, the cheese topping burn, the dish collapse into a soggy, oleaginous mess.
—Isaac Butler, The New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2023
Trump cheapened the honor into near irrelevance by awarding it to Limbaugh, who died earlier this year, and then, on his way out the door in January, to two of his most oleaginous sycophants in Congress, Rep. Devin Nunes of California and Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio.
—Eric Zorn, chicagotribune.com, 22 Apr. 2021
Ted Cruz, the perennial front-runner, is smug and oleaginous—hated equally by his colleagues and the public.
—Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 26 Sep. 2022
The interludes make for juicy lampoons of that unfortunate Western export, oleaginous showbiz faux-intimacy.
—Peter Marks, Washington Post, 21 June 2022
The French state is represented effectively here by oleaginous High Commissioner De Roller (Magimel), a European long based in Tahiti.
—Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 May 2022
The latest incident of the Trump coterie casting new light on previously routine corruption in Washington came earlier this month, courtesy not of Trump himself, but of his oleaginous son-in-law.
—Casey Michel, The New Republic, 20 Apr. 2022
After tapping the oleaginous Gaetz, Biden said that crude from the Florida congressman could start flowing throughout the United States by the end of the week.
—Andy Borowitz, The New Yorker, 23 Nov. 2021
Cite this Entry
“Oleaginous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/oleaginous. Accessed 30 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
oleaginous
adjective
ole·ag·i·nous
ˌō-lē-ˈaj-ə-nəs
: resembling or having the properties of oil
also
: containing or producing oil
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