petroleum
Use Petroleum in a sentence
li noun
an oily, thick, flammable, usually dark-colored liquid that is a form of bitumen or a mixture of various hydrocarbons, occurring naturally in various parts of the world and commonly obtained by drilling: used in a natural or refined state as fuel, or separated by distillation into gasoline, naphtha, benzene, kerosene, paraffin, etc.
Origin:
1520–30; < Medieval Latin: literally, rock oil, equivalent to Latin petr(a) rock (< Greek pétra) + oleum oil
1520–30; < Medieval Latin: literally, rock oil, equivalent to Latin petr(a) rock (< Greek pétra) + oleum oil
Related forms
pe·tro·le·ous, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To petroleum
00:10
Petroleum
is always a great word to know.
So is flibbertigibbet. Does it mean:
| a chattering or flighty, light-headed person. |
| a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
petroleum (pəˈtrəʊlɪəm) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| a dark-coloured thick flammable crude oil occurring in sedimentary rocks around the Persian Gulf, in parts of North and South America, and below the North Sea, consisting mainly of hydrocarbons. Fractional distillation separates the crude oil into petrol, paraffin, diesel oil, lubricating oil, etc. Fuel oil, paraffin wax, asphalt, and carbon black are extracted from the residue | |
| [C16: from Medieval Latin, from Latin petra stone + oleum oil] | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History
petroleum
1348, from M.L. petroleum, from L. petra "rock" + oleum "oil."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Science Dictionary
| petroleum (pə-trō'lē-əm) Pronunciation Key
A thick, flammable, yellow-to-black mixture of gaseous, liquid, and solid hydrocarbons that occurs naturally beneath the Earth's surface. It can be separated into fractions including natural gas, gasoline, naphtha, kerosene, paraffin wax, asphalt, and fuel and lubricating oils, and is used as raw material for a wide variety of derivative products. It is believed to originate from the accumulated remains of fossil plants and animals, especially in shallow marine environments. |
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Example sentences
Advances in biotechnology are limiting the damage oil spills inflict, as scientists supercharge bacteria to devour petroleum.
It's not written in stone that humanity has to propel itself with petroleum alone.
But discoveries of huge petroleum deposits kept gasoline and diesel cheap for decades, and biofuels were largely forgotten.
Petroleum gave us the population bubble, and petroleum will burst the bubble.
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