unctuous

Definitions  ·  Examples  ·  Pronunciations  ·  Etymologies  ·  Related  ·  Statistics  ·  Comments (7)  · 
“
It was rolling, unctuous, and so strong that Petty not only shook with it, but his horse seemed to shake also.

View all »
Definitions (11)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (5)

  1. adjective Characterized by affected, exaggerated, or insincere earnestness: "the unctuous, complacent court composer who is consumed with envy and self-loathing” (Rhoda Koenig).
  2. adjective Having the quality or characteristics of oil or ointment; slippery.
  3. adjective Containing or composed of oil or fat.
2 more from this dictionary »

Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (4)

Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (1)

Toggle WordNet definitions WordNet (1)

Toggle elsewhere links Elsewhere on the web

View all »
Examples (50)

  • Very unctuous was the expression by His Holiness of his apprehensions regarding "dangers to the salvation" and of his "fears for the souls" of the Venetian Senators, if they persisted in asserting their own control of their own state. —  Autobiography of Andrew Dickson White, V2
  • Sam Donaldson really smacks down the ever-unctuous (and historically inaccurate) —  Crooks and Liars
  • The lawyer spoke little; when he did his voice was rich and unctuous--the sort of voice that Ishmael always described to himself as "porky." —  Secret Bread
  • The earth was black and unctuous, and bubbling under the feet, left no track behind. —  The Hill of Dreams
  • The movement was large and unctuous, and it impressed Kate considerably I took the liberty to stop, for you seemed so interested that I felt curious to know what could be worth looking at in those chimneys and cinder-mounds I wasn't looking at the factories, but at the hills. —  A Mummer's Wife
More examples »
 

Tags

unctuous hasn't been tagged yet.

Sign up or sign in to add tags.

Words tagged unctuous

Stats

This word has been looked up 721 times.

2 people have marked this word as a favorite.

stop updating
On Twitter

Photos from

flickr images

Add a related word »
Related

Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

Allen's Allen's Synonyms and Antonyms

Used in the same context Used in the Same Context

oily ·  smug ·  resinous ·  glutinous ·  viscous ·  heartfelt ·  ingratiate ·  pungent ·  rotund ·  deferential ·  bland ·  nauseous
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (2)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Middle English, from Old French unctueus, from Medieval Latin ūnctuōsus, from Latin ūnctum, ointment, from neuter past participle of unguere, to anoint.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (1)

  1. from French onctueux = Spanish untuoso = Portuguese unctuoso = Italian untuoso, from Middle Latin unctuosus, greasy, oily, from Latin unctus, a smearing, anointing, Middle Latin also ointment, from ungere, unguere, past participle unctus, smear, anoint: see unction, unguent.
 

Pronunciations
Record your own »
/ˈəŋktʃjuəs/
by American Heritage

Charts
frequency chart

Bubble size: how much this word was used in a year

Bubble height: used more or less than expected, vs. all uses evenly distributed

You can expect to see this word several times a year.

Recently looked up

psychobabble · feedback · Argon · confit · impenitent

Recent Favorites

pygopagus · sanglant · Astacus · sweetbread · qualms

Recent Pronunciations

oh for heaven's sake · embodies · silence · spell it rite · britney