ooze

1
[ ooz ]
See synonyms for: oozeoozedoozing on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object),oozed, ooz·ing.
  1. (of moisture, liquid, etc.) to flow, percolate, or exude slowly, as through holes or small openings.

  2. to move or pass slowly or gradually, as if through a small opening or passage: The crowd oozed toward the entrance.

  1. (of a substance) to exude moisture.

  2. (of something abstract, as information or courage) to appear or disappear slowly or imperceptibly (often followed byout or away): His cockiness oozed away during my rebuttal speech.

  3. to display some characteristic or quality: to ooze with piety.

verb (used with object),oozed, ooz·ing.
  1. to make by oozing.

  2. to exude (moisture, air, etc.) slowly.

  1. to display or dispense freely and conspicuously: He can ooze charm when it serves his interest.

noun
  1. the act of oozing.

  2. something that oozes.

  1. an infusion of oak bark, sumac, etc., used in tanning.

Origin of ooze

1
First recorded before 1000; Middle English noun wose, woze, Old English wōs “juice, moisture”; verb derivative of the noun

Other words for ooze

Words Nearby ooze

Other definitions for ooze (2 of 2)

ooze2
[ ooz ]

noun
  1. Geology. a calcareous or siliceous mud composed chiefly of the shells of one-celled organisms, covering parts of the ocean bottom.

  2. soft mud, or slime.

  1. a marsh or bog.

Origin of ooze

2
First recorded before 900; Middle English wose, woze, Old English wāse “mud, slime”

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use ooze in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for ooze (1 of 2)

ooze1

/ (uːz) /


verb
  1. (intr) to flow or leak out slowly, as through pores or very small holes

  2. to exude or emit (moisture, gas, etc)

  1. (tr) to overflow with: to ooze charm

  2. (intr often foll by away) to disappear or escape gradually

noun
  1. a slow flowing or leaking

  2. an infusion of vegetable matter, such as sumach or oak bark, used in tanning

Origin of ooze

1
Old English wōs juice

British Dictionary definitions for ooze (2 of 2)

ooze2

/ (uːz) /


noun
  1. a soft thin mud found at the bottom of lakes and rivers

  2. a fine-grained calcareous or siliceous marine deposit consisting of the hard parts of planktonic organisms

  1. muddy ground, esp of bogs

Origin of ooze

2
Old English wāse mud; related to Old French wāse, Old Norse veisa

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012