snake oil

noun

1
: any of various substances or mixtures sold (as by a traveling medicine show) as medicine usually without regard to their medical worth or properties
2

Examples of snake oil in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Many longevity doctors are less enchanted, underscoring time and again the lack of research, and the snake oil that fills the industry. Clara Molot, Vanity Fair, 30 Apr. 2026 Rather than focusing on the conspiracy theories Jones espoused, the new InfoWars will build its comedic base off a spoof of the old site’s predatory snake oil rackets. Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 29 Apr. 2026 Even so, some medical experts think that myofunctional therapy can border on snake oil. Gilad Edelman, The Atlantic, 15 Mar. 2026 What is actual breakthrough science and what is the same old snake oil? Ted Johnson, Deadline, 12 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for snake oil

Word History

First Known Use

1917, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of snake oil was in 1917

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Cite this Entry

“Snake oil.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/snake%20oil. Accessed 5 May. 2026.

Medical Definition

snake oil

noun
: any of various substances or mixtures sold (as by a traveling medicine show) as medicine usually without having had the claims of their medical worth or properties substantiated by scientific tests
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