OILS Synonyms: 43 Similar and Opposite Words

oils 1 of 2

noun

plural of oil

as in paintings

a picture created with oil paint that artist is known to have created only oils and charcoal sketches

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oils

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of oil

as in greases

to coat (something) with a slippery substance in order to reduce friction if you oil the machinery on a regular basis, it will operate more efficiently

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of oils

Noun

Fats are found in foods like butter, oils, nuts, meat, and fish. — Jillian Kubala, HEALTH, 7 Aug. 2026 Its products include fuel for cars, jet fuel and a wide range of oils. — Sam Meredith, CNBC, 6 Aug. 2026 Focus on healthy oils and fats such as olive oil and avocado. — Pubsubhub User, Chicago Tribune, 5 Aug. 2026 Natural treatments include pruning affected areas, spraying with water, applying rubbing alcohol, or using horticultural oils. — Leanne Potts, Better Homes & Gardens, 5 Aug. 2026 The development by Virginia Tech offers a solution for reducing PVC waste and producing environmentally friendly industrial oils. — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 5 Aug. 2026 Abrasive scrubbers can dull protective and glossy topcoats and strip oils from wood, so use something with milder scrubbing power. — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 4 Aug. 2026 The study did not determine who introduced the other oils or whether the brands themselves knew about them. — Greg Rosalsky, NPR, 4 Aug. 2026 The formulas are backed by experts in microbiome science and dermatology, and are free from preservatives, allergens and unnecessary ingredients, such as oils, that could irritate the skin. — Samantha Conti, Footwear News, 31 July 2026

Verb

Ramakrishnan typically oils her hair twice a week before washing it. — Katie Hill, PEOPLE, 14 Jan. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for oils

Noun

Done at a large scale, at times measuring more than 8 feet wide, Urgessa begins his paintings by drawing them out on the floor before introducing oil to the canvas via a long brush.

— Maximilíano Durón, ARTnews.com, 6 Aug. 2026
Nothing of this reality is visible in the paintings themselves, whose facture is immaculate.

— Carmen Rosenberg-Miller, Artforum, 6 Aug. 2026

Definition of paintings

Verb

View this post on Instagram Access greases the gears of the entire apparatus by creating its own positive feedback loop, like an ouroboros of exclusivity.

— Bloomberg, Mercury News, 14 Apr. 2026
No eyeball-grabbing videos, no partisan commentary or agenda, and none of the edge or snark that greases the gears of the perpetual-political-outrage machine.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 5 Apr. 2026

Definition of greases

Noun

At the Whitney Biennial, Carmen de Monteflores’s long-unseen shaped canvases of colorful overlapping figures hung alongside her daughter Andrea Fraser’s wax sculptures of sleeping toddlers.

— Carmen Rosenberg-Miller, Artforum, 6 Aug. 2026
Her own method is to paint directly onto wild-cotton canvases, without any preliminary drawings.

— Gabriella Angeleti, The New York Review of Books, 1 Aug. 2026