# When did "butter" become a synonym for "margarine"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 10, 2009, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999 "2009-11-10T03:37:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/21 "2009-11-10T15:24:51Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > On a related note - when did “hamburger” come to mean “cheeseburger”? Or when you order a cheeseburger with just pickles and they ask you if you want the cheese…umm, maybe I wouldn’t have ordered a cheeseburger otherwise. Next they’ll ask if I want the meat and bun! ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/22 "2009-11-10T15:28:27Z")
> [@Ludovic](#): > > Or when you order a cheeseburger with just pickles and they ask you if you want the cheese…umm, maybe I wouldn’t have ordered a cheeseburger otherwise. Next they’ll ask if I want the meat and bun! Heh. I always worry about this when I order a cheeseburger for my 9YO “with _nothing_ but ketchup” (she would never dream of eating pickles or mustard!) and I’m just waiting for the day when I get. . .a hamburger bun with ketchup. Period. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![VunderBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/839c29/32.png) [@VunderBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VunderBob)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/23 "2009-11-10T15:37:30Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > So far, the winner and still champion was the Fast Food Drone who put cheese on my burger _anyway_ then, when I returned it and she was called to task by the manager said it was “stupid” to have a burger without cheese and she made it the way _she_ liked it. Not clear on the concept of giving the customer what she wants, not clear at all… At least your fast food brain surgeon (McD’s, FWIW) wasn’t the one who insisted I wanted Dr. Pepper despite my order of Diet Coke. After three tries to get said Diet Coke, I gave them my entire order back without demanding a refund and stormed off in a huff to the Wendy’s down the road. To add insult to injury, same thing happened the next weekend at a different place in a different state. That time I told the droid that if he did not immediately remove the Dr. Pepper from my order screen, he was going to lose the sale. He copped a 'tude, and I wound up dealing with the manager directly. ---
**Author:** ![Chopper9760](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cdc98d/32.png) [@Chopper9760](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chopper9760)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/24 "2009-11-10T16:06:09Z")
LOL, I’m 24 and I get _pissed_ when I pull the lid off the butter dish and find, horror of horrors, actual butter. I was raised on Parkay, I likes me the margarine. Real butter is creepy and white _shudder_ To my folks’ shame I’m one of the young asshats who calls margarine butter. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/25 "2009-11-10T16:23:51Z")
> [@](#): > > When did “butter” become a synonym for “margarine”? Mama Plant referred to margarine or butter as “Oleo”. During WWII, butter was rationed and some nasty thing called “Oleo” was eaten instead. I believe this is where the confusion came from, and was learned from parents after that. ---
**Author:** ![Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maggie_the_Ocelot)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/26 "2009-11-10T17:32:41Z")
I’ve never had Real Butter as a staple in my house, ever. We was po’ growing up, and couldn’t afford it - nowadays, I haven’t had it often enough that I can tell the difference, so I still get the cheaper stuff. We always called it “butter” though. I remember being taken aback when I went to a friend’s house and they had _both_ butter (for baking and stuff) and margarine (for everyday use). I had never known that there was enough of a difference that people would care one way or another! ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/27 "2009-11-10T17:33:29Z")
> [@Always Brings Pie](#): > > Eh, they sell it in bulk at Sam’s Club. It’s called. But-r-Kreme or something obnoxious like that. Butt-Or-Kreme? ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/28 "2009-11-10T17:39:29Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > On a related note - when did “hamburger” come to mean “cheeseburger”? > > I order a hamburger I want a _hamburger_. If I wanted a _cheeseburger_ I would have SAID “cheeseburger”! > > Even more annoying are the dumbfounded looks I get when I say “I want a hamburger with NO CHEESE on it” > > Fast Food Drone blinks rapidly in disbelief: “You don’t want the cheese?” They put cheese on cheeseburgers now? I thought is was yellow chemical waste. ---
**Author:** ![MidnightRadio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecd19e/32.png) [@MidnightRadio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MidnightRadio)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/29 "2009-11-10T18:00:44Z")
> [@norinew](#): > > Heh. I always worry about this when I order a cheeseburger for my 9YO “with _nothing_ but ketchup” (she would never dream of eating pickles or mustard!) and I’m just waiting for the day when I get. . .a hamburger bun with ketchup. Period. 😉 Sooner or later, that’s exactly what’s going to happen. Twice, at two different Subways, I’ve ordered a Veggie Delight (or Delite, as they probably call it) with jalapeños, and received a bun with nothing on it but the jalapeños. And both times, when I went back to get it replaced, they acted as if _I_ was the idiot. ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/30 "2009-11-10T18:11:42Z")
> [@MidnightRadio](#): > > Twice, at two different Subways, I’ve ordered a Veggie Delight (or Delite, as they probably call it) with jalapeños, and received a bun with nothing on it but the jalapeños. And both times, when I went back to get it replaced, they acted as if _I_ was the idiot. Well, if you’re standing there and staring at the bun while they only put jalepenos on it, pay for it, and walk away, then come back later… I can see where they’d get that impression. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/31 "2009-11-10T18:16:27Z")
If I asked for butter and got margarine, I would ask them for my money back. If they refused, I would stuff in the guy’s face and walk out. We don’t keep margarine in the house. We also don’t use much butter, not that I wouldn’t if I could. Love the stuff. ---
**Author:** ![ratatoskK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ratatoskk/32/2987_2.png) [@ratatoskK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ratatoskK)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/32 "2009-11-10T18:27:46Z")
Dunkin Donuts also uses margarine when you’ve asked for butter. ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/33 "2009-11-10T18:37:06Z")
Related pet peeve: I hate Miracle Whip. It is not mayonnaise, it is salad dressing. It says so right on the jar. I hate it when I get a sandwich, ask if they use real mayonnaise, and then bite into it to find out it’s Miracle Whip. ---
**Author:** ![Chopper9760](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cdc98d/32.png) [@Chopper9760](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chopper9760)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/34 "2009-11-10T18:44:04Z")
My grandmother makes fruit salad with that creepy red-lidded Miracle Whip stuff that claims to be salad dressing. She uses it and Cool Whip interchangeably - keeps you on your toes at Sunday dinner. ---
**Author:** ![kittenblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ba8739/32.png) [@kittenblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenblue)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/35 "2009-11-10T18:45:11Z")
Growing up we rarely had butter in the house…too expensive, my mom felt…but butter was used as a generic term for margarine or soft spreads. We only baked with margarine, too…because back then, sticks of margarine were really margarine, and gave decent results. Nowadays you have to search for real margarine sticks…most are a blend product that does not bake well. Even good old Parkay comes in different formulas, and you have to hunt for the real margarine one. Now we use only butter for baking, and diet spreads for toast…well, Mom uses the diet spread. I really, really want a butter bell so I can keep butter nice and soft on the counter for spreading, but the prices are just too high. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/36 "2009-11-10T19:23:09Z")
> [@Chopper9760](#): > > My grandmother makes fruit salad with that creepy red-lidded Miracle Whip stuff that claims to be salad dressing. She uses it and Cool Whip interchangeably Good gad. You have my most heart felt condolences, Sir. ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/37 "2009-11-10T19:41:59Z")
> [@Pulp\_Friction](#): > > Don’t get me started on maple syrup. 😃 Heh. That was the first thing I thought of, too. I don’t expect real food from IHOP, but so many other restaurants—restaurants that I would expect to be higher quality—just have that fake crap anymore. I don’t even care if they want to charge me extra for it. Just keep a bottle of maple syrup in the back so that the few remaining customers with taste can get it. ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/38 "2009-11-10T19:55:24Z")
> [@iamthewalrus\_3](#): > > Heh. That was the first thing I thought of, too. > > I don’t expect real food from IHOP, but so many other restaurants—restaurants that I would expect to be higher quality—just have that fake crap anymore. I don’t even care if they want to charge me extra for it. Just keep a bottle of maple syrup in the back so that the few remaining customers with taste can get it. Heh. I feel the same way about that crap KFC serves you now if you ask for honey for your biscuits! To me, buttermilk biscuits with (real!) butter and honey are proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy. 😉 These days, since honey prices have sky-rocketed, they serve this “Honey-Flavored Spread” crap! Listen, KFC, when I ask for honey, please tell me that since the prices have gone up, you’re now forced to charge 10c a packet for the stuff. But give me _real_ honey, or tell me you don’t have it anymore! ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/39 "2009-11-10T20:45:52Z")
I support this rant - I am watching my calories like a hawk, and while I might make room in my day’s allowance for real butter, I would much prefer a dry sandwich to one with margarine. If you say butter and you mean margarine, say margarine so I have the option of saying, “No, thanks.” The maple syrup debate doesn’t bother me since I never expect real maple syrup outside of my own home. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999/40 "2009-11-10T21:47:46Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > In much the same way that “Coke” means “Any cola beverage” I notice fast food places don’t ask, but at a sit down resturant if I ask for a Coke, and they have Pepsi, the waiter/waitress will say “We have Pepsi?” as if to say “Is this OK?” So perhaps the fast food type places just assume [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-butter-become-a-synonym-for-margarine/516999.md?page=3)