pour oil on troubled waters
English · Thesaurus
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pour oil on troubled waters
Where it comes from
From the ancient practice of pouring oil on the seawaves in order to calm them.
verb pours oil on troubled waters · pouring oil on troubled waters · poured oil on troubled waters
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To calm, appease or quiet a person or situation.
Tom Street deemed it his duty to pour oil upon the troubled waters, being, as it were, officially responsible for the welfare of the chowder-plates and tobacco-pipes which were hired for the occasion.
Similar: cast oil on troubled waters · Opposite: add fuel to the fire
Translations
Every language
verb calm, appease or quieten
| Español | templar gaitas, apaciguar los ánimos |
|---|---|
| Français | calmer le jeu |
| Deutsch | die Wogen glätten |
Talk about this word "pour oil on troubled waters." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/pour%20oil%20on%20troubled%20waters. Accessed 7 Nov. 2026. pour oil on troubled waters. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 7, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/pour%20oil%20on%20troubled%20waters "pour oil on troubled waters." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 7, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/pour%20oil%20on%20troubled%20waters.Cite this
@misc{pour_oil_on_troubled_waters_2026,
title = {pour oil on troubled waters},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/pour%20oil%20on%20troubled%20waters},
urldate = {2026-11-07}
}
