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Glite Dictionary
⛽ A power source ⛽ To supply energy 🔥 To make stronger
to fuel

to fuel

88 2.0
To put a substance that makes energy into a vehicle or machine so it runs
  • verb
  • /fjul/
translation icon : repostar
  • Before the race, the team needed to fuel their car to ensure it had enough energy to compete.
  • fuel the engine
  • fuel with gas
  • fuel with diesel

To meet US emissions standards, they had to fuel inject US cars like this one.

Examples

  • The new regime may prove unable to alleviate the immediate economic conditions fueling civil unrest.

    Academic text (2012)

  • They can help you fuel up fast for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

  • Just remember to fill it with fuel, that's all I think.

  • The jet is fueling as we speak.

    Eraser (1996)

  • The jet is fueled and ready for takeoff.

    Trapped Daughter (2021)

  • I want a small jet standing by, fueled and ready for takeoff.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • I want a six-seat helicopter with a range of 200 miles, fully fueled, on the roof.

    Desperate Measures (1998)

  • What is happening outside legislative and judicial chambers is fueling the fires of reproductive restrictions.

    Academic text (1991)

  • The Athabasca River, which runs through northern Alberta, where you have many different native communities living along the river, is being sucked of its water to fuel the tar sands operations.

    END:CIV (2011)

  • The technician will fuel the generator to prepare it for the storm ahead.

Synonyms

to refuel
vsto fuel
30 3.0

To put more petrol or gas into a vehicle so it can go on

is about supplying power to something literally so it can work
to gas up
vsto fuel
  • Informal
10 1.9

Fill a car or truck's fuel tank

is the general act of supplying power, not limited to one energy source
to gas
vsto fuel
  • US
5 1.3

To fill a vehicle with fuel for its engine

is the broader act of supplying power to make machines work
to coal
vsto fuel
  • Archaic
1 8.1

To put black rock that burns into a ship or engine for fuel

is the broader act of supplying power regardless of material used

Antonyms

to empty
179 1.0

To remove everything from a container or place

Idioms

to add fuel to the fire
  • Informal
7 5.9

To make a bad situation worse by saying or doing something that makes people angrier

like jet fuel
  • Informal
1 8.4

With very strong energy that makes someone act quickly

to pour fuel on the fire
  • Informal
7.3

To make a bad situation worse by saying or doing something

Phrasal Verbs

to save on fuel
1 3.0

Use less fuel to lower your costs

Compounds

fossil fuel
125 3.3

A fuel like coal, oil, or natural gas made from ancient plants and animals

fuel cell
  • Specialized
32 4.5

A device that makes electricity from hydrogen and oxygen

nuclear fuel
  • Specialized
17 4.6

A material like uranium or plutonium used to make energy in a nuclear reactor

fuel line
  • Specialized
15 3.1

A tube that carries fuel from a tank to an engine

diesel fuel
  • Specialized
14 2.8

A heavy oil used to power engines in vehicles and machines

jet fuel
  • Specialized
13 3.5

A liquid that planes burn in their engines to make them run

rocket fuel
  • Specialized
9 3.9

A substance you burn to move a rocket into space

fuel injection
  • Specialized
5 3.6

A system that sprays small drops of fuel directly into an engine's cylinders to help the engine run better

fuel oil
  • Specialized
5 3.5

A heavy oil that heats buildings and runs engines

fuel system
  • Specialized
4 3.6

A part of a car or plane that stores and gives fuel to the engine

fuel gauge
4 2.9

A device that shows how much fuel is left in a car's tank

fuel filter
  • Specialized
3 3.4

A device in a fuel line that removes dirt and rust from fuel before it reaches the engine

fuel pod
  • Specialized
2 5.5

A removable container that attaches to a plane or spacecraft to hold extra fuel

fuel level
1 3.0

The amount of fuel left in a tank

fuel-air explosive
  • Specialized
1 7.3

A weapon that sprays fuel into the air and then sets it on fire to make a very strong blast

fuel injection system
  • Specialized
1 4.1

A part of a car engine that sprays small drops of fuel into the cylinders

fuel consumption rate
1 3.9

Amount of fuel a vehicle like a car uses for a certain distance or time

fuel-air bomb
  • Specialized
1 8.4

A bomb that spreads fuel into the air and then explodes to make a very large blast

combustion of fuel
  • Specialized
4.2

A process where fuel burns in air to make heat and light for energy

fuel for success
  • Informal
4.2

A thing that gives a person energy and drive to do well

fuel indicator
3.5

A device that shows how much fuel is left in a car's tank

high-test fuel
  • Specialized
6.2

Fuel with a high octane rating for powerful car or plane engines

smoker fuel
  • Specialized
6.7

Natural material burned in a bee smoker to make smoke that calms bees

solid-fuel rocket
  • Specialized
5.3

An engine that burns solid fuel to push a vehicle into the sky

How Full

to overfill
3 3.9
to top up
3 3.2
to fuel
88 2.0
to fill
∞ 1.0
to refill
63 1.3

Surface Forms

fuel infinitive
fueled past
fueled past participle
fueling present participle
fuels third person singular

Etymology

The verb fuel originally meant to 'feed' a fire by adding material, so to fuel a car or generator is to give it the energy source it needs to run.