ooze

¹ American  

[ooz] / uz /

verb (used without object)

oozed, oozing

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.

3. (of a substance) to exude moisture.

4. (of something abstract, as information or courage) to appear or disappear slowly or imperceptibly (often followed by out oraway ).

   His cockiness oozed away during my rebuttal speech.

5. to display some characteristic or quality.

   to ooze with piety.

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verb (used with object)

oozed, oozing

1. to make by oozing.

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

3. 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.

   Synonyms:

   sludge, muck, mud, mire, slime

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

ooze ² American  

[ooz] / uz /

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.

3. a marsh or bog.

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ooze ¹ British  

/ 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)

3. (tr) to overflow with

   to ooze charm

4. to disappear or escape gradually

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noun

1. a slow flowing or leaking

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

ooze ² British  

/ 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

3. muddy ground, esp of bogs

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Etymology

Origin of ooze¹

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

Origin of ooze²

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

Example Sentences

IN THE MORNING, Nim’s knee was hotter and fatter, with red lines streaking around the ooze.

From Literature

Emma truly does look sorry, and the sympathy oozing from her voice makes me want to cry even more.

From Literature

They fell in a heap on the oozing ground.

From Literature

She yelped as black liquid oozed from the open wound and a hairy white spider crept out and skittered away.

From Literature

Tuna salad oozed out from between the slices of bread and clung to the plastic bag.

From Literature

Related Words

• bleed
• drain
• dribble
• exude
• leak
• percolate
• seep
• trickle