Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

oleo

1 American  
[oh-lee-oh] / ˈoʊ liˌoʊ /

noun

  1. margarine.

oleo- 2 American  

  1. a combining form meaning “oil,” used in the formation of compound words.

    oleograph.
oleo- British  

combining form

  1. oil

    oleomargarine
"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

Etymology

Origin of oleo1

First recorded in 1880–85; by shortening of oleomargarine

Origin of oleo-2

< Latin, combining form representing oleum oil

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The key is oleo saccharum, which sounds like an ingredient from a laboratory, but is really just a process that pulls essential oils from citrus using sugar.

From Washington Post • Apr. 8, 2020

But that hope might be oleo, a poor substitute.

From Time • May 13, 2013

They cried that oleo was full of worms and that its natural color was tattletale grey.

From Time Magazine Archive

Besides ECA and the arms budget, it had authorized reciprocal-trade extension, rent-control extension, executive reorganization, oleo tax repeal, and extension of export and allocation controls.

From Time Magazine Archive

Too tired to mix the saffron-colored powder into the hard cake of oleo, she simply smeared the white stuff on the bread and sprinkled the sugar over it.

From "Sula" by Toni Morrison

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.