The Collaborative International Dictionary
Drying \Dry"ing\, a.
Adapted or tending to exhaust moisture; as, a drying wind or day; a drying room.
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Having the quality of rapidly becoming dry.
Drying oil, an oil which, either naturally or after boiling with oxide of lead, absorbs oxygen from the air and dries up rapidly. Drying oils are used as the bases of many paints and varnishes.
Wiktionary
n. An oil that hardens to a tough, solid film after a period of exposure to air.
WordNet
n. an oil that hardens in air due to oxidation and is often used as a paint or varnish base
Wikipedia
A drying oil is an oil that hardens to a tough, solid film after a period of exposure to air. The oil hardens through a chemical reaction in which the components crosslink (and hence, polymerize) by the action of oxygen (not through the evaporation of water or other solvents). Drying oils are a key component of oil paint and some varnishes. Some commonly used drying oils include linseed oil, tung oil, poppy seed oil, perilla oil, and walnut oil. Their use has declined over the past several decades, as they have been replaced by alkyd resins and other binders.
Since oxidation is the key to curing in these oils, those that are susceptible to chemical drying are often unsuitable for cooking, and are also highly susceptible to becoming rancid through autoxidation, the process by which fatty foods develop off-flavors. Rags, cloth, and paper saturated with drying oils may combust spontaneously (ignite) in a few hours as heat is released during the oxidation process.
Usage examples of "drying oil".
The crushed seeds give a fixed, semi-drying oil used in making soap, etc.
It is largely used in the arts for its properties as a drying oil.
The hemp drying oil business went principally to DuPont petrochemicals.
The smell of drying oil, the romantic quirky paintings that filled his room.