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Glite Dictionary
diesel fuel

diesel fuel

14 2.8
A heavy oil used to power engines in vehicles and machines
  • noun
  • /ˈdiːzəl fjuːəl/
  • Specialized
translation icon : combustible diésel
  • The adopted wind-diesel system is the most cost-effective alternative when diesel fuel prices exceed $3.67 per gallon.
  • diesel fuel and gasoline
  • sulfur diesel fuel
  • diesel fuel prices

Police went in and seized thousands of gallons of diesel fuel that didn't work.

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Examples

  • Our farm, we're going to use about 40,000 gallons of diesel fuel a year.

    Food, Inc. (2008)

  • Removing sulfur from diesel fuel in 2006 will enable the use of various emissions treatment technologies.

    Academic text (2006)

  • It's already full of diesel fuel, sir.

    Jarhead (2005)

  • The energy density of diesel fuel is too low.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • You can actually lower your gasoline or diesel fuel usage by using this product.

    Blog text (1)

  • Presently, diesel fuel is preferred because its tax is much lower than the tax on gasoline.

    Academic text (1990)

  • A third factor was the air pollution generated by the gasoline- and diesel-fuel-powered equipment used in the cleanup effort.

    Academic text (2009)

  • Because the tanks held diesel fuel, which could burn but couldn't explode, the danger of fire was minimal.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • The Indian government recently eliminated the excise duty waiver allowed on diesel fuel consumed by trawlers, except those involved in HEOUs.

    Academic text (1990)

  • The truck runs efficiently on diesel fuel, making it ideal for long distances.

Synonyms

diesel
vsdiesel fuel
45 2.4

A fuel made from oil used in engines like trucks and buses

focuses on the fuel as a heavy mineral oil used also in machinery
diesel oil
vsdiesel fuel
  • Specialized
1 2.8

A heavy oil used as fuel in diesel engines

means the same but is the more common or shorter name
derv
vsdiesel fuel
  • UK
9.9

Fuel for cars and lorries that run on diesel

covers a wider range of machinery and vehicle types beyond just roads

Surface Forms

diesel fuel singular
diesel fuels plural

Morphology

diesel + fuel

The meaning is transparently derived from its parts: 'diesel' (a petroleum-derived liquid) + 'fuel' (material burned to make energy) clearly indicates a type of fuel used in diesel engines. This is a straightforward lexical compound with no idiomatic or metaphorical shift and is cross-linguistically predictable, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will understand it.

Etymology

Diesel fuel is named after Rudolf Diesel, the man who invented the 'diesel engine'. Because this heavy oil is what those diesel engines burn, the name now means the thick fuel used in diesel engines.