fossil fuel
125
3.3
- noun
- /ˈfɑsəl fjuːəl/
:
combustible fósil
- A reduction in the use of fossil fuels is an effective means of reducing CO2 emissions.
- energy from fossil fuels
- fossil fuel consumption
- fossil fuel use
So mostly buildings are heated from fossil fuels and from the gas system in the main.
- So mostly buildings are heated from fossil fuels and from the gas system in the main.
- Well, when we burn ancient carbon stored as fossil fuels, we emit carbon dioxide.
- And all of that is powered by fossil fuel diesel trucks.
- It's just that the death toll from fossil fuels is less visible.
- So we're having the Chinese use fossil fuels to make us our unreliable energy.
- As demand goes up, demand for fossil fuel goes down.
- And the first myth I think they do believe is that fossil fuels are being phased out.
- Yeah, putting out air that would eliminate fossil fuels.
- We can't completely do away with fossil fuels yet, but we can gradually phase them out.
- Because of the burning of fossil fuels, we're making the planet greener.
Examples
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Even so, continued reliance on fossil fuels for energy poses many environmental risks.
Academic text (2011) -
We can't completely do away with fossil fuels yet, but we can gradually phase them out.
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That ended with the beginning of the fossil fuel age; now they can go all over the planet and take what they want.
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The fossil fuels are going to get ever more expensive.
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Nuclear is the energy of the future because fossil fuels are limited.
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So electricity is mostly being made by fossil fuels today, not just in China.
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What they want is a 20 percent reduction in fossil fuel emissions.
Fiction book (1995) -
And we have to stop using fossil fuels to power our industrial civilization.
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The burning of fossil fuels has increased the carbon dioxide content of the atmosphere.
Academic text (1999) -
Natural gas, the cleanest-burning fossil fuel, heats half of the homes in the United States.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
A material burned to make energy for heat, light or engines
Antonyms
- Specialized
28
3.7
Energy from natural sources like the sun or wind that does not run out and causes little pollution
How Solar-based
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun phrase literally combines 'fossil' (remains of ancient organisms) with 'fuel' (material burned for energy), so the meaning 'fuel made from ancient remains' is directly derivable from its constituents. This adjective+noun composition is semantically regular and common across languages, so a B1 learner knowing both words would readily infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
The term fossil fuel comes from the idea that very old plants and animals became fossils in the ground and their remains turned into fuel over time. So the name means 'fuel made from ancient life' and now refers to coal, oil, and gas we burn for energy.