liniment
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of liniment
1375–1425; late Middle English < Late Latin linīmentum ointment, equivalent to linī ( re ) (for Latin linere to smear) + -mentum -ment
Explanation
A liniment is a balm or lotion you rub into your skin to soothe your achy muscles. If you're sore after playing basketball all afternoon, you should put some liniment on your legs. Liniment can take various forms, from an oily lotion to a thick, waxy salve. Strictly speaking, a liniment is medicated and brings a feeling of heat to the skin, easing cramps and stiffness of the underlying muscles. The word was once a technical medical term, but today it's more likely to describe a homemade remedy. The Latin root of liniment is linere, "to smear."
Vocabulary lists containing liniment
Running Out of Time
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Ophie's Ghosts
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Little Men
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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 liniment smell of eucalyptus trees also reminds me of my backyard when I was a kid.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 6, 2025
These revivals will be greeted with much good will, though what they might need is liniment.
From New York Times • Jan. 5, 2023
Neither does the strong waft of liniment come out of the changing rooms if you happen to be standing close enough.
From BBC • Nov. 8, 2021
He’d put liniment on and pull on my leg.
From Slate • Apr. 23, 2020
It smelled of mint and liniment and unwashed body with another odor that Ophie couldn’t quite place but wasn’t at all good.
From "Ophie's Ghosts" by Justina Ireland
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.
