well-oiled
Americanadjective
Etymology
Origin of well-oiled
First recorded in 1730–40
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.
Aimed squarely at kids of all sizes, “Star Wars” has become a glorified tour of a billionaire’s expanding playworld and “The Mandalorian and Grogu” wants the track well-oiled, not bumpy.
From Los Angeles Times • May 19, 2026
“They’ve designed such a well-oiled machine,” Anastasio said.
From Salon • May 2, 2026
On Wall Street, Steve Feinberg had a well-oiled sales pitch for investors thinking of betting billions on his corporate turnarounds.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026
Amazon’s e-commerce business “remains a well-oiled machine” delivering consistent revenue growth and capturing global market share in a slow-growth retail environment, according to Horowitz.
From MarketWatch • Jan. 9, 2026
The three of us were like well-oiled robots, our assembly line never veering off course: fold, stuff, seal, repeat.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
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.
