snake oiln.1. A worthless preparation fraudulently peddled as a cure for many ills.2. Speech or writing intended to deceive; humbug.American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.snake oil n 1. any pseudo-medical remedy endorsed by a non-qualified person 2. talk that is intended to impress others but is insincere or deceiving Collins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014snake? oil` n. a liquid concoction of questionable medical value sold as an all-purpose curative, esp. by traveling hucksters. Random House Kernerman Webster’s College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.