bitter almond oil

6.0

An oil from bitter almonds that people use to add an almond smell or taste to food and perfume

noun
/ˈbɪtər ˈɑlmənd ɔɪl/

: aceite de almendra amarga

Some traditional marzipan recipes call for a few drops of bitter almond oil to achieve authentic flavor.

Examples

The chef added a few drops of bitter almond oil to the cake batter.
Because it naturally contains benzaldehyde, bitter almond oil must be carefully refined for food use.
Bitter almond oil is widely used to add a distinctive aroma to certain liqueurs.
Have you ever tried using bitter almond oil in your recipes?
Bitter almond oil is widely used to add a distinctive aroma to certain liqueurs.
Some traditional marzipan recipes call for a few drops of bitter almond oil to achieve authentic flavor.
Because it naturally contains benzaldehyde, bitter almond oil must be carefully refined for food use.

Surface Forms

bitter almond oil singular

bitter almond oils plural

Morphology

bitter + almond + oil

The meaning 'an oil obtained from bitter almonds' is directly and compositionally derived from the constituents 'bitter' + 'almond' + 'oil' — i.e., an oil made from bitter almonds. This is a regular compound noun following transparent noun-modifier logic (cross-linguistically common), so a B1 learner who knows the words would infer the meaning.

Etymology

Bitter almond oil comes from making oil from bitter almonds, nuts that give a very strong, slightly bitter almond smell. Because that oil was used to add almond taste and scent, people call it the oil used in 'flavorings and perfumery', which is why the name means the pale yellow oil used for taste and scent.