essential oil

noun

: any of a class of volatile oils that give plants their characteristic odors and are used especially in perfumes and flavorings, and for aromatherapy compare fixed oil

Examples of essential oil in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Keep their coffee warm with a new mug heater, help them de-stress after a long day with an essential oil diffuser or neck massager, and beautify their classroom through real (and Lego) plants. —Melissa Epifano, People.com, 1 Dec. 2024

Other topicals like Osea’s Vagus Nerve Oil, $48, employ essential oils shown to reduce stress, which is a common contributor to headaches. Lights, including computer screens, can also be a migraine trigger, which has led to a growing market of eye masks, massagers and glasses. —Emily Burns, WWD, 26 Nov. 2024

For a non-culinary option, consider using cardamom essential oil in aromatherapy for its relaxing scent. —Johna Burdeos, Health, 25 Nov. 2024

Its essential oil is even known as liquid gold today. —JSTOR Daily, 22 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1674, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

essential oil

noun

: any of a large class of volatile odoriferous oils of vegetable origin that give plants their characteristic odors and often other properties, that are obtained from various parts of the plants (as flowers, leaves, or bark) by steam distillation, expression, or extraction, that are usually mixtures of compounds (as aldehydes or esters), and that are used often in the form of essences in perfumes, flavorings, and pharmaceutical preparations

called also ethereal oil, volatile oil

compare fatty oil, fixed oil