buttery

¹ American  

[buht-uh-ree] / ˈbʌt ə ri /

adjective

1. like, containing, or spread with butter.

2. resembling butter, as in smoothness or softness of texture.

   a vest of buttery leather.

3. grossly flattering; smarmy.

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buttery ² American  

[buht-uh-ree, buh-tree] / ˈbʌt ə ri, ˈbʌ tri /

noun

• butteries
  plural

1. Chiefly New England. a room or rooms in which the provisions, wines, and liquors of a household are kept; pantry; larder.

2. a room in colleges, especially at Oxford and Cambridge universities, from which articles of food and drink are sold or dispensed to the students.

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buttery ¹ British  

/ ˈbʌtərɪ /

adjective

1. containing, like, or coated with butter

2. informal grossly or insincerely flattering; obsequious

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buttery ² British  

/ ˈbʌtərɪ /

noun

1. a room for storing foods or wines

2. (in some universities) a room in which food is supplied or sold to students

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• butteriness
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• butteries
  plural

Etymology

Origin of buttery¹

First recorded in 1350–1400;  Middle English buttry, buttrie; see butter, -y ¹

Origin of buttery²

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English boterie, butry, from Middle French, Old French, from Late Latin botāria (derivative of bota, butta “cask”) + -erie; see origin at butt ⁴, -ery

Explanation

Buttery food is full of butter, a rich creamy fat. Buttery also describes anything that reminds you of butter, like warm yellow light or a smooth talker who’s trying to butter you up so she can borrow your car. Although buttery is often used literally, as in “buttery popcorn,” it can describe anything that’s like butter in another way. If you describe someone's words or manner as buttery, you mean that they act insincerely complimentary or fawning. An old-fashioned meaning of buttery is "storeroom," like a pantry for keeping food or wine. Some British universities have a buttery, which is a snack shack for students.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

buttery butteries

Think of this as savory frico brittle: buttery Ritz crackers, broken into uneven pebbles and hunks, tossed with Parmesan, herbs and a little fat, then baked until the cheese melts into crisp, golden clusters.

From Salon ● Jul. 14, 2026

The buttery, milder fish compliments the tang of the tomatoes and the bright balsamic dressing that finishes the salad.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026

This recipe takes garlic bread — one of humanity’s most reliable pleasures — and pushes it toward buttery perfection.

From Salon ● Jun. 22, 2026

Keyla Marquez, our fashion director at large, asked, turning to me from inside the buttery dome, glass of Champagne in hand.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2026

I do my part by placing a tin of buttery biscuits in front of our mother.

From "You Bring the Distant Near" by Mitali Perkins

Raffan tucked into supermarket meal deals and butteries - a "really dense, stodgy" Scottish pastry - but describes cold custard as his "secret weapon".

From BBC ● Jan. 16, 2023

Provender was in the butteries, coal within the bins.

From Time Magazine Archive

Between classes I drink cups of coffee with them and eat doughnuts, sitting in various common rooms and butteries and coffee shops.

From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood

To the north of the hall are ranges of offices, which appear to have been butteries; beyond are the traces of splendid apartments. 

From The Wye and Its Associations a picturesque ramble by Leitch Ritchie

And under these rooms, a fair and large cellar, sunk under ground; and likewise some privy kitchens, with butteries and pantries, and the like.

From The Essays of Francis Bacon by Francis Bacon