What does "ooze" mean?
Tanning liquor, an aqueous extract of vegetable matter (tanbark, sumac, etc.) in a tanning vat used to tan leather.
Ooze
/uːz/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Tanning liquor, an aqueous extract of vegetable matter (tanbark, sumac, etc.) in a tanning vat used to tan leather.
- Grammar: ooze is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: slime, bleed, blob, clay.
- Useful contrasts: conceal, dry, dry matter.
- Usage evidence: After a while, passion and infatuation ooze away.
How to use "ooze"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "ooze" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "ooze" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "ooze" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "ooze" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "ooze" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "slime" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "ooze", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Tanning liquor, an aqueous extract of vegetable matter (tanbark, sumac, etc.) in a tanning vat used to tan leather. countable, uncountable
- 2 Soft mud, slime, or shells especially in the bed of a river or estuary. countable, uncountable
"my son i' th' ooze is bedded."
- 3 the process of seeping wordnet
- 4 An oozing, gentle flowing, or seepage, as of water through sand or earth. countable, uncountable
- 5 A pelagic marine sediment containing a significant amount of the microscopic remains of either calcareous or siliceous planktonic debris organisms. countable, uncountable
"Seaweed were left on the blackened marble, while the salt ooze defaced the matchless works of art."
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 any thick, viscous matter wordnet
- 7 Secretion, humour. countable, obsolete, uncountable
- 8 A piece of soft, wet, pliable ground. countable, uncountable
- 9 Juice, sap. countable, obsolete, uncountable
Verb
- 1 To be secreted or slowly leak. figuratively, intransitive, sometimes
"I promised him I would keep silence, but the story gradually oozed out, and the Cronsons left the country."
- 2 release (a liquid) in drops or small quantities wordnet
- 3 To give off a strong sense of (something); to exude. figuratively, transitive
"[…] this room, where misfortune seems to ooze, where speculation lurks in corners, and of which Madame Vauquer inhales the warm, fetid air without being nauseated."
- 4 pass gradually or leak through or as if through small openings wordnet
Example
"After a while, passion and infatuation ooze away."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "ooze"?
Common synonyms include: slime, bleed, blob, clay, diminish, dirt.
How do you use "ooze" in a sentence?
After a while, passion and infatuation ooze away.
How do you pronounce "ooze"?
Pronounced /uːz/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
* (Noun) Middle English wose (“sap”), from Old English wōs (“sap, froth”), from Proto-Germanic *wōsą, from Proto-Indo-European *wóseh₂ (“sap”) (cf. Sanskrit वसा (vásā, “fat”)). Cognate to Middle Low German wose (“scum”), Old High German wasal (“rain”), Old Swedish os, oos, ooss, Swedish os. Compare Old Swedish os, oos, Swedish os, Danish os, Norwegian os (“fumes, vapors, reeking, fug”). * (Verb) Middle English wosen, from Old English wōsan; see above. Compare Swedish osa (“ooze”).
Etymology 2
From Middle English wose, from Old English wāse (“mud, mire”), from Proto-West Germanic *waisā, from Proto-Germanic *waisǭ (compare Dutch waas (“haze, mist; bloom”), (obsolete) German Wasen (“turf, sod”), Old Norse veisa (“slime, stagnant pool”)), from Proto-Indo-European *weys- (“to flow”) (compare Sanskrit विष्यति (viṣyati, “flow, let loose”)). Compare also Saterland Frisian öäzje (“to smear”). More at virus.