noun
Freq #1229660
Meanings
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1
noun
a pale, thick oil pressed from castor beans, used medicinally as a laxative and industrially as a lubricant, plasticizer, and chemical feedstock
Castor oil was once a common household laxative, but it also has many industrial uses.
Thesaurus
Synonyms
1
noun
· a pale, thick oil pressed...
castor bean oilricinus oil
Word family
Related forms
castor beancastor-oil plantricinoleic acidlaxativelubricantRicinus communis
Etymology
Recorded in English from 1746. Castor probably reflects the oil's former medicinal use as a substitute for castoreum, a substance obtained from beavers; oil is from Old French oile, ultimately Latin oleum. The plant names castor bean and castor-oil plant were then formed from the name of the oil.