Wiktionary

gasoline

English

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Gasoline in a Mason jar
 
A typical gasoline container holds 1.03 U.S. gallons (3.9 litres)

Alternative forms

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  • gasolene (archaic in America except in Jamaica)

Etymology

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From Cazeline (possibly influenced by Gazeline, the name of an Irish copy), a brand of petroleum-derived lighting oil,[1] from the surname of the man who first marketed it in 1862, John Cassell,[2] and the suffix -eline. The name Cassell is from Anglo-Norman castel[3] (cognate of English castle), from Old French castel, from Latin castellum, diminutive of castrum. The suffix -eline is from Ancient Greek ἔλαιον (élaion, “oil, olive oil”), from ἐλαία (elaía, “olive”). Gasolene is found from 1863, and gasoline from 1864.[4]

Pronunciation

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  • (UK, US) IPA(key): /ˈɡæs.ə.liːn/
    • (US, dialectal) IPA(key): /ɡæsl̩ˈin/, /ɡæsˈlin/, [ɡæˈsɵlin], [ɡæsɵˈlin]
  • Audio (US):(file)
  • Rhymes: -iːn

Noun

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gasoline (usually uncountable, plural gasolines)

  2. (uncountable, Canada, US, Philippines) A flammable liquid consisting of a mixture of refined petroleum hydrocarbons, mainly used as a motor fuel; petrol.
    • 1864, Congress of the United States, Internal Revenue Act §94:
      […] naphtha of specific gravity exceeding eighty degrees […] and of the kind usually known as gasoline, shall be subject to a tax of five per centum ad valorem.
    • 1991, Backdraft, Robert DeNiro (actor):
      So you punched out a window for ventilation. Was that before or after you noticed you were standing in a lake of gasoline?
    • 2012 October 31, David M. Halbfinger, “New Jersey Continues to Cope with Hurricane Sandy”, in New York Times‎[4], retrieved 31 October 2012:
      Localities across New Jersey imposed curfews to prevent looting. In Monmouth, Ocean and other counties, people waited for hours for gasoline at the few stations that had electricity. Supermarket shelves were stripped bare.
  3. (countable) Any specific kind of gasoline.
    The refinery produces a wide range of gasolines.
  4. (slang, drugs) Marijuana, especially very potent or high quality.
    Synonym: gas
  5. (slang) An alcoholic beverage made of vodka and energy drink.

Usage notes

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Gasoline is defined by its combustion properties rather than by chemical composition, which is quite variable.

Synonyms

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  • gas (North America)
  • petrol (UK, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa)

Hyponyms

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Derived terms

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Descendants

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Translations

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Adjective

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gasoline (not comparable)

  1. Made from or using gasoline.
    • 2006, Edwin Black, chapter 1, in Internal Combustion‎[5]:
      If successful, Edison and Ford—in 1914—would move society away from the ever more expensive and then universally known killing hazards of gasoline cars: […] .

References

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  1. ^ The Solicitors' Journal and Reporter‎[1], volume 9, 1865, page 368
  2. ^ John Lloyd, John Mitchinson (2012) 1,227 QI Facts To Blow Your Socks Off, Faber & Faber, →ISBN.
  3. ^ “Last name: Cassell”, in Surname Database‎[2], 2017, archived from the original on 29 July 2010
  4. ^ “The origin of gasoline”, in Oxford Dictionary‎[3], 2012, archived from the original on 7 November 2012

Italian

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Noun

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gasoline f

  1. plural of gasolina

Anagrams

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