palm oil

American  

noun

• palm oils
  plural

1. a yellow butterlike oil derived from the fruit of the oil palm and used as an edible fat and for making soap, candles, etc.

2. oil obtained from various species of palm.

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palm oil British  

noun

1. a yellow butter-like oil obtained from the fruit of the oil palm, used as an edible fat and in soap

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• palm oils
  plural

Etymology

Origin of palm oil

First recorded in 1620–30

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

palm oil

Late last month, an Indonesia-based wildlife foundation shared footage showing an orangutan writhing on the ground on a palm oil plantation in West Kalimantan, one of Indonesia's hardest-hit provinces.

From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026

Cargo surveyor AmSpec Agri Malaysia estimates that Malaysian palm oil exports fell 17% on month during Sept. 1-10.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

Find insight on gold futures, palm oil, mining stocks and more in the latest Market Talks covering Basic Materials.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026

Industry-funded conservation associations say plantations have made progress in becoming sustainable palm oil producers but face difficult economic realities.

From Barron's

The dried egg yolk, fried in red palm oil, looked soggy and unnervingly bright-colored on the plate.

From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie