Margarine

//ˈmɑɹ.d͡ʒə.ɹɪn// noun, verb

noun, verb ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A spread, manufactured from a blend of vegetable oils (some of which are hydrogenated), emulsifiers etc, mostly used as a substitute for butter. uncountable, usually
  2. 2
    a spread made chiefly from vegetable oils and used as a substitute for butter wordnet
  3. 3
    The solid ingredient of human fat, olive oil, etc. dated, uncountable, usually
Verb
  1. 1
    To spread or cover (something) with margarine. transitive

    "Putting the finishing touches on her party dinner, this attractive hostess does the last minute job of margarining her rolls to serve piping hot to her guests."

Synonyms

All synonyms
margeoleomargarinebutterbuttermilkcertified milkcheese

Antonyms

All antonyms
butter

Example

More examples

"We substitute margarine for butter."

Etymology

Borrowed from French margarine, from acide margarique (“margaric acid”), from Ancient Greek μάργαρον (márgaron, “pearl”), in allusion to its pearly lustre, with the suffix -ine, influenced by glycérine (“glycerine”). French chemist Michel Eugène Chevreul named margaric acid after its pearl-like crystallization.

Related phrases

olive oilvegetable oil

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.