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whale oil

noun
  1. oil rendered from whale blubber, formerly widely used as a fuel for lamps and for making soap and candles.
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Origin of whale oil

late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for whale oil

Historical Examples of whale oil

  • Whale-oil was whale-oil then, and whale-oil and New Bedford were synonymous.

    Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, Volume 11 (of 14)

    Elbert Hubbard

  • For fire, the Eskimo depends on whale-oil and animal grease.

  • For borers and rabbits wash with whale-oil soap, digging out any borers that may be in with a knife.

    The Apple

    Various

  • The Grocers seem to have at one time dealt in whale-oil and wool.

    Old and New London

    Walter Thornbury

  • The little room was lighted by a whale-oil lamp on the wall.

    Jerome, A Poor Man

    Mary E. Wilkins Freeman

British Dictionary definitions for whale oil

whale oil

noun
  1. oil obtained either from the blubber of whales (train oil) or the head of the sperm whale (sperm oil)
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012