petroleum

See also: Petroleum

English

Alternative forms

• petrolaeum (archaic)
• petrolæum (archaic)

Etymology

From Medieval Latin petroleum, from petra (“rock”) + oleum (“oil”).

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /pəˈtɹoʊliəm/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

petroleum (countable and uncountable, plural petroleums or petrolea)

1. A flammable liquid ranging in color from clear to very dark brown and black, consisting mainly of hydrocarbons, occurring naturally in deposits under the Earth's surface.

   Synonyms: crude oil, oil

   petroleum-based products

   • 1940, William Plotts, Isogeotherm, Or Monist Theory of Stratified Mineral Occurrence and Origin, page 7:

     Coal and petroleum do not occur hap-hazard in nature, but the aggregate occurrence of each product in any region forms a definite, limited horizon, which, in its continuance, is independent of the bedding plane.

Derived terms

• liquefied petroleum gas
• packaged petroleum product
• petrol
• petroleum coke
• Petroleum County
• petroleum ether
• petroleum fly
• petroleum jelly
• petroleum spirit

 

Related terms

• (not a synonym) petrol (gasoline, gas)
• linoleum

Translations

oil — see oil

Dutch

Etymology

From Medieval Latin petroleum, from petra (“rock”) + oleum (“oil”).

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: pe‧tro‧le‧um

Noun

petroleum m (uncountable)

1. petroleum

Synonyms

• aardolie
• ruwe olie

Descendants

• → Indonesian: petroleum

Indonesian

Etymology

From Dutch petroleum, from Medieval Latin petroleum, from petra (“rock”) + oleum (“oil”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [pe.troˈleu.m]
• Hyphenation: pét‧ro‧lé‧um

Noun

petroleum or pétroléum

1. petroleum.

   Synonym: minyak bumi

Further reading

• “petroleum” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Language Development and Fostering Agency — Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic Indonesia, 2016.