vegetable oil

American  

noun

• vegetable oils
  plural

1. any of a large group of oils that are esters of fatty acids and glycerol, obtained from the leaves, fruit, or seeds of plants.

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vegetable oil British  

noun

1. any of a group of oils that are esters of fatty acids and glycerol and are obtained from plants

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• vegetable oils
  plural

Etymology

Origin of vegetable oil

First recorded in 1895–1900

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

vegetable oil

The only ones I tend to avoid are neutral vegetable oil, which can make the whole thing feel a little filmy, and coconut oil, unless that is a flavor you specifically want to chase.

From Salon ● Sep. 6, 2026

And Phillips 66’s refinery in Rodeo, Calif., also makes renewable diesel from vegetable oil.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 15, 2026

"This time armed with tools I tried again. The hedgehog wasn't budging - then my wife reminded me to try vegetable oil," said Andy.

From BBC ● Apr. 29, 2026

Imports from Malaysia amounted to $12.54 billion, mainly minerals, vegetable oil and electrical machinery and equipment.

From Barron's ● Feb. 8, 2026

At the microscopic level, the protein cubes were solid food particles suspended in thick vegetable oil.

From "The Martian" by Andy Weir

Related Words

• lard
• lubricant
• oil