drying oil

American  

noun

1. any of a group of oily, organic liquids occurring naturally, as linseed, soybean, or dehydrated castor oil, or synthesized, that when applied as a thin coating absorb atmospheric oxygen, forming a tough, elastic layer.

---

drying oil British  

noun

1. one of a number of animal or vegetable oils, such as linseed oil, that harden by oxidation on exposure to air: used as a base for some paints and varnishes

---

Etymology

Origin of drying oil

First recorded in 1860–65

Example Sentences

Father Nieuwland shook his head, decided it might be good for drying oil or possibly sheep dip.

From Time Magazine Archive

The workmen must do without sleep; we will use drying oil in the paint.

From Rise and Fall of Cesar Birotteau by Balzac, Honoré de

According as an oil contains oleic acid or olinic acid, it is termed a fatty or drying oil.

From The Art of Perfumery And Methods of Obtaining the Odors of Plants by Piesse, George William Septimus

We have been told that drying oil mixed with mastic varnish has been, though not very recently, used in our National Gallery.

From Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 58, Number 360, October 1845 by Various

When pressed, they yield largely of pure palatable oil, as a drying oil for paint, and known as artists' oil.

From Catalogue of Economic Plants in the Collection of the U. S. Department of Agriculture by Saunders, William