oleaginous
English edit
Etymology edit
Borrowed from French oléagineux, borrowed from Medieval Latin oleāginōsus (“oily”), from olea (“the olive tree or its fruit”).
Pronunciation edit
Adjective edit
oleaginous (comparative more oleaginous, superlative most oleaginous)
- Oily, greasy.
- 1707, J[ohn] Mortimer, The Whole Art of Husbandry; or, The Way of Managing and Improving of Land. […], 2nd edition, London: […] J[ohn] H[umphreys] for H[enry] Mortlock […], and J[onathan] Robinson […], published 1708, →OCLC:
- […] the use of Linseed-oyl, Tar, or such oleaginous Matter, tends much to their Preservation and Duration.
- 1929, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, The Disintegration Machine[1]:
- Looking back, it seemed to me that a slight oleaginous mist was still hovering round the chair.
- 2000, Joyce Carol Oates, Blonde, page 677:
- His once-black hair had faded to the color of used steel wool and now covered his bony skull in a peculiar oleaginous fuzz.
- (of manner or speech) Falsely or affectedly earnest; persuasively suave.
- Synonyms: fulsome, smarmy, unctuous
- The oleaginous salesman convinced me to buy a more expensive car.
- 2015 November 1, Hendrik Hertzberg, “That G.O.P. Debate: Two Footnotes”, in The New Yorker[2]:
- Cruz was obviously analogizing Bernie Sanders to the Bolsheviks and Hillary Clinton to the Mensheviks. The oleaginous Texan is an erudite slyboots, but his history is off-kilter.
- 2018 May 9, George F. Will, “Trump is no longer the worst person in government”, in The Washington Post:
- The oleaginous Mike Pence, with his talent for toadyism and appetite for obsequiousness, could, Trump knew, become America’s most repulsive public figure.
- 2023 January 11, Peter Bradshaw, “Tár review – Cate Blanchett is perfect lead in delirious, sensual drama”, in The Guardian[3], →ISSN:
- She runs a mentoring scholarship programme for women, administered by a tiresome, oleaginous would-be conductor, played by Mark Strong, and there are rumours that this is a source of young women with whom Tár has affairs.
Translations edit
oily, greasy
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falsely or affectedly earnest; persuasively suave
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