Definition:
- (n.) A semisolid unctuous substance, neutral, and without taste or odor, derived from petroleum by distilling off the lighter portions and purifying the residue. It is a yellowish, fatlike mass, transparent in thin layers, and somewhat fluorescent. It is used as a bland protective dressing, and as a substitute for fatty materials in ointments.
Compare petrolatum with other words:
paraffin vs. petrolatum
petrolatum vs. vaseline
petrolatum vs. petroleum