paraffin
1
6.2
- noun
- /ˈkɛrəˌsin/
- UK
:
parafina
- During winter, many households rely on paraffin heaters to keep warm.
- paraffin lamp
- paraffin oil
- liquid paraffin
Examples
-
In the evening, we used a paraffin lamp to light our way through the garden.
-
The cell had no windows; the small paraffin lamp burned.
Fiction book (1998) -
One evening near dark, Mrs. O'Dare was baking a meat pie in the kitchen by the light of a paraffin lamp.
Fiction book (2001) -
The candles which we provide are non-toxic and are more environmentally friendly than the regular paraffin candles.
Blog text (23) -
They'd confirmed his initial hunch on the accelerant—it had been paraffin.
Fiction book (1990) -
The Clear Mist 100 Hour Emergency Candle ($8) is a sealed liquid paraffin lamp (so, not technically a candle) that burns without odor or smoke for four days.
Blog text (32) -
He bought several liters of paraffin for his camping stove.
Synonyms
41
3.8
A clear oil used as a fuel for lamps, heaters, and some engines
A thin clear liquid used as fuel for lighting and heating, for example in lamps
Compounds
1
4.3
White solid made from oil in the ground used to make candles and preserve or coat things
- Specialized
A group of simple molecules like methane and propane made of hydrogen and carbon
Surface Forms
Etymology
Paraffin comes from the same Latin parts parum ('little') and affinis ('related'), meaning it does not react much with other substances, a quality of many oils. Because of this the name was used for several oily products and, in British English, paraffin means the thin fuel oil Americans call 'kerosene'.