Oleo
/ˈoʊliˌoʊ/noun
A butter substitute or margarine, especially one made from vegetable oils.
Did you know?Oleo comes from Latin oleum, meaning “oil,” and the word was popularized as a polite, commercial substitute for “butter,” especially when dairy taxes and politics made language itself part of the recipe.
Etymological Timeline
Latin
Latin
oleum
“oil, olive oil”
Medieval Latin
Latin
oleo
“of oil; oily”
19th Century
English
oleo
“oleomargarine, a butter substitute”
Modern English
English
oleo
“a butter substitute, especially margarine”