banana oil
noun
a sweet-smelling liquid ester, C7H14O2, 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.
Slang.
insincere talk; nonsense.
Origin of banana oil
First recorded in 1925–30
Words nearby banana oil
banalize,
banana,
banana belt,
banana bender,
banana family,
banana oil,
banana plug,
banana prawn,
banana republic,
banana republics,
banana seat
British Dictionary definitions for banana oil
banana oil
noun
a solution of cellulose nitrate in pentyl acetate or a similar solvent, which has a banana-like smell
a nontechnical name for pentyl acetate
Idioms and Phrases with banana oil
banana oil
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]