as in oily
overly or insincerely flattering
the office manager greeted the corporate bigwigs with an oleaginous welcome that should have embarrassed him
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Recent Examples of oleaginous
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
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
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
David Owen, The New Yorker, 27 July 2024
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
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for oleaginous
Adjective
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Touch screens are the worst, thanks to the constant exposure to our oily fingers.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
9 Sep. 2025
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It can be caused by a number of different triggers, including certain medical conditions, hair care habits, dry scalp, hormone fluctuations, overproduction of a naturally-occurring yeast on the scalp and oily skin.—
Hannah Yasharoff,
USA Today,
9 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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In its equilibrium, a good tomato sandwich is juicy and unctuous and appropriately messy, which is praise all-too-often reserved for hot sandwiches like cheesesteaks or patty melts.—
Catherine Jessee,
Southern Living,
18 July 2025
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But there's an elevated simplicity in Rolf and Daughters' tangle of excellent tonnarelli, spun in an unctuous garlicky sauce, finished with sweet, tender lumps of Dungeness crab.—
Mackensy Lunsford,
Nashville Tennessean,
14 July 2025
Adjective
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The sickening moment of Kirk's murder was captured on video and has been viewed by tens of millions of people.—
Melissa Galbraith,
USA Today,
11 Sep. 2025
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The song comments on the sickening glee that’s been spread in some corners in the aftermath of Kirk’s death.—
Andy Greene,
Rolling Stone,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Eschewing the polished, hagiographic style of many contemporary making-of documentaries, Figgis keeps his footprint small and his perspective immediate.—
Patrick Brzeski,
HollywoodReporter,
27 Aug. 2025
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Years of hagiographic media coverage and his immense social-media reach birthed legions of fanboys and nurtured a cult of personality.—
Franklin Foer,
The Atlantic,
28 July 2025
Adjective
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Finish by wiping down the upholstery with a damp microfiber cloth to remove any soapy residue.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
Southern Living,
6 Sep. 2025
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The device’s design is well-suited for microgravity, preventing issues like pooling liquids and soapy wastewater.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
2 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Sashimi Thanks to the abundant waters, even humble izakayas serve world-class slices.—
Kaila Yu,
Forbes.com,
12 Sep. 2025
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Pollen is abundant, Cho adds—a single floret of the common sunflower, for instance, produces 25,000 to 67,000 grains every summer.—
Sandy Ong,
JSTOR Daily,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The Social Security Administration sent a gushy, questionable email July 4 to millions of people collecting Social Security benefits and others.—
Susan Tompor,
USA Today,
21 July 2025
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The chatter has only grown in recent days, after Ms. Anderson — who just celebrated a birthday — posted a story on her Instagram account, showing a lavish bouquet of flowers and a gushy card from an admirer.—
Jesse McKinley,
New York Times,
12 Dec. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Oleaginous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/oleaginous. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
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