banana oil

[ buh-nan-uh oil ]

noun

1. Also called am·yl ac·e·tate [am, -il , as, -i-teyt],. a sweet-smelling liquid ester, C 7 H 14 O 2 , a mixture of isomers derived from amyl alcohol and having the characteristic odor of bananas: used chiefly as a paint solvent and in artificial fruit flavors; amyl acetate.
2. Slang. insincere talk; nonsense.

banana oil

noun

1. a solution of cellulose nitrate in pentyl acetate or a similar solvent, which has a banana-like smell
2. a nontechnical name for pentyl acetate

Word History and Origins

Origin of banana oil¹

First recorded in 1925–30

Idioms and Phrases

Nonsense, exaggerated flattery, as in I should be on television? Cut out the banana oil ! The precise analogy in this idiom is not clear, unless it is to the fact that banana oil, a paint solvent and artificial flavoring agent, has no relation to the fruit other than that it smells like it. Possibly it is a variation on snake oil , a term for quack medicine that was extended to mean nonsense. [1920s]

Example Sentences

Insults use mostly antiquated terms: “ding dong,” “oh, banana oil,” “dumb yokels,” “loser,” “punk.”

From Washington Post

Sissy explained that she had bought a bit of gold paint powder, mixed it with a few drops of banana oil and had gilded each penny.

From Literature

But, after all, it was the banana oil the aluminum paint was mixed with that turned the trick.

From Project Gutenberg

To "fix" this color so that it will not rub off, and to keep the metal from tarnishing, apply a coat of banana oil or lacquer.

From Project Gutenberg

If there's any perfume fitter for a lost soul than attar of banana oil, it hasn't been discovered.

From Project Gutenberg