grease
the melted or rendered fat of animals, especially when in a soft state: She always saves the bacon grease to fry her eggs and potatoes in.
fatty or oily matter in general; lubricant: The auto mechanic’s overalls were stained with engine grease and motor oil. The golfer admitted to using a little grease on the face of his driver to reduce sidespin.
Informal. a bribe.
Also called grease wool [grees-wool] /ˈgris ˌwʊl/ . shorn wool before being cleaned of the oily matter.
Also called grease-heel [grees-heel]. /ˈgrisˌhil/. Veterinary Pathology. inflammation of a horse's skin in the fetlock region, accompanied by an oily secretion.
to lubricate by putting a fatty or oily substance on: I think I need to grease my bike chain a little—it’s not moving smoothly.
to smear or cover with a fatty or oily substance: Grease the baking sheet before spooning the dough onto it.In pioneer days they sometimes made windows out of greased paper.
to cause to occur easily or smoothly; facilitate: Extra incentives were offered to grease the trade deal.If it looks like it’ll be an awkward social engagement, he has a stiff drink first to grease the proceedings.
Informal. to bribe.
Idioms about grease
grease (someone's) palm, to bribe: The only way to get a permit in this town is to grease the commissioner's palm.
Origin of grease
1Other words from grease
- grease·less, adjective
- grease·less·ness, noun
- grease·proof, adjective
- re·grease, verb (used with object), re·greased, re·greas·ing.
- un·greased, adjective
- well-greased, adjective
Words that may be confused with grease
- grease , Greece
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use grease in a sentence
As long as government is around, and politicians need their palms greased, money will be there as well.
The Senate bill “was greased to be bipartisan with 6,371 earmarks,” he said.
Sniping on Capitol Hill Ends a Brief Cease-Fire Between the Parties | Patricia Murphy | March 23, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTTransparency is what keeps the wheels of the free market—and, coincidentally, your sex life—greased.
Spousonomics: How Economics Can Help Figure Out Your Marriage | Paula Szuchman, Jenny Anderson | January 31, 2011 | THE DAILY BEASTMargin calls greased the slide as stockholders were unable to deliver.
What the Richest Men in the World Don't Know | Barbara Goldsmith | January 23, 2009 | THE DAILY BEASTThe axle, which is likewise of wood, is never greased, and thus causes the demoniacal kind of music to which I alluded.
A Woman's Journey Round the World | Ida Pfeiffer
He made his loaves, tucked them into the pan and greased the top with bacon grease saved in a tomato can for such use.
Cabin Fever | B. M. BowerCash then took down the little square baking pan, greased from the last baking of bread, and in that he fried his hot cakes.
Cabin Fever | B. M. BowerThey next covered his arms with sleeves made of wadded silk, and then presented him with kid gloves, also greased inside.
Chicot the Jester | Alexandre Dumas, PereI was really afraid for a minute that you were serious; and he letting himself be greased and crowned.
Chicot the Jester | Alexandre Dumas, Pere
British Dictionary definitions for grease
animal fat in a soft or melted condition
any thick fatty oil, esp one used as a lubricant for machinery, etc
Also called: grease wool shorn fleece before it has been cleaned
Also called: seborrhoea vet science inflammation of the skin of horses around the fetlocks, usually covered with an oily secretion
to soil, coat, or lubricate with grease
to ease the course of: his education greased his path to success
grease the palm of or grease the hand of slang to bribe; influence by giving money to
Origin of grease
1Derived forms of grease
- greaseless, adjective
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
Other Idioms and Phrases with grease
In addition to the idioms beginning with grease
- grease someone's palm
- grease the wheels
also see:
- elbow grease
- like greased lightning
- squeaky wheel gets the grease
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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