sperm oil

American  

noun

Chemistry.

1. a yellow, thin, water-insoluble liquid obtained from the sperm whale, used chiefly as a lubricant in light machinery, as watches, clocks, and scientific apparatus.

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sperm oil British  

noun

1. an oil obtained from the head of the sperm whale, used as a lubricant

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Etymology

Origin of sperm oil

First recorded in 1820–30

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sperm oil

And no, I'm not suggesting that we go back to burning sperm oil.

From Salon ● Dec. 11, 2021

“Squeeze! squeeze! squeeze!” he writes, in “Moby-Dick,” about pressing the lumps out of sperm oil.

From The New Yorker ● Jul. 22, 2019

The tables include name of the vessel, its class, tonnage, captain, managing owner, whaling ground, date of sailing and arrival, sperm oil / whale oil / whalebone barrels and pounds.

From Salon ● Jun. 12, 2012

Businessmen began to speculate what industry would next suffer the leverage of the Government's stockpile, which includes 77 items ranging from asbestos to sperm oil.

From Time Magazine Archive

Solid alcohols occur naturally in sperm oil, but hydrocarbons, which may be generally recognised by the fluorescence or bloom they give to the oil, are not natural constituents of animal or vegetable oils and fats.

From The Handbook of Soap Manufacture by Simmons, W. H.