unctuous

[ uhngk-choo-uhs ]

Part of Speech adjective

Origin + Etymology

late Middle English; Latin from the late 14th century, "oily, having a greasy or soapy feeling when touched," from the Old French unctueus, from Medieval Latin unctuosus "greasy," from Latin unctus "act of anointing"

Synonyms

fatty
greasy
buttery
smooth

oleaginous slick

Antonyms

dry rough abrasive

genuine sincere blunt

Definition

1. of the nature of or characteristic of an unguent or ointment; oily; greasy

2. characterized by excessive piousness or moralistic fervor, especially in an affected manner; excessively smooth, suave, or smug

Examples

1. A) The dishes had an unctuous feel to them, so someone must have not cleaned them thoroughly. B) She rubbed the unctuous lotion onto her skin, hoping it would help alleviate the winter dryness.

2. A) She decided not to go on a second date with the man, as his personality seemed too unctuous. B) The woman gave an unctuous performance at the talent show in hopes of winning.

Usage Over Time

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Usage Over Time

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bereft

[ bih-reft ]

deprived

transpire

[ tran-spahyuhr ]

to occur, happen; take place

sordid

[ sawr-did ]

squalid; wretchedly poor and run-down

persnickety

[ per-snik-i-tee ]

overparticular; fussy

cogent

[ koh-juhnt ]

convincing or believable by virtue of forcible, clear, or incisive presentation; telling

scintillating

[ sin-tl-ey-ting ]

witty; brilliantly clever

mitigate

[ mit-i-geyt ]

to make less severe

acronym

[ ak-ruh-nim ]

a word formed from the initial letters or groups of letters of words in a set phrase or series of words and pronounced as a separate word, as Wac from Women's Army Corps, OPEC from Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, or loran from long-range navigation; a set of initials representing a name, organization, or the like, with each letter pronounced separately; an initialism