Phrase guide

petroleum jelly

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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No pronunciation record was provided for this word.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum; used in lubricants and ointments.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: multi-hydrocarbon, petrolatum, soft paraffin, Vaseline, white petrolatum

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

a semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum; used in medicinal ointments and for lubrication

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: petrolatum, mineral jelly

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: mixture, jelly

Narrower terms: Vaseline

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

17 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: petrolat — pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum
  • Chinese Mandarin: 礦脂 /矿脂 (kuàngzhī) — pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum
  • Chinese Mandarin: 凡士林 (Vaseline) — pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum
  • Czech: vazelína — pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum
  • Finnish: vaseliini — pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum
  • Galician: vaselina — pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum
  • Greenlandic: punnerusaaq — pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum
  • Irish: veasailín — pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum
  • Italian: petrolato — pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum
  • Japanese: ワセリン (Waserin) — pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum
  • Portuguese: vaselina — pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum
  • Russian: вазели́н (vazelín) — pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum
  • Spanish: vaselina — pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum
  • Spanish: petrolato — pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum
  • Swedish: vaselin — pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum
  • Swedish: petroleumgelé — pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum
  • Turkish: vazelin — pale yellow semisolid mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum