vaseline

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun a trademarked brand of petroleum jelly

Etymology

From German Wasser (“water”) + Ancient Greek ἔλαιον (élaion, “oil”) + -ine. Genericized trademark of the Vaseline brand of petroleum jelly introduced by American chemist Robert Augustus Chesebrough in 1872.

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