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petrol

petrol

36 1.4
A liquid fuel that cars use in their engines
  • noun
  • /ˈpɛtrəl/
  • UK
translation icon : gasolina
  • He filled the tank with petrol before starting the long journey.
  • a petrol station
  • petrol prices
  • petrol bombs

The car had run out of petrol and he said so.

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Examples

  • We need to stop at the petrol station to refuel the car.

  • The price of petrol has increased significantly this year.

  • The car had run out of petrol and he said so.

  • We are just having a quick petrol and food stop.

  • How much petrol do we have?

  • Has he only given you enough money and petrol to get to work and back home?

    Blog text (17)
  • I got it at the petrol garage.

  • I don't have the petrol.

  • We've got to get some petrol and boom, boom.

  • They've got planes, but not enough petrol for them to take off.

    Fiction book (1991)

Synonyms

fuel
vspetrol
1.0

A material burned to make energy for heat, light or engines

is a specific petroleum-derived liquid used mainly to power engines
gas
vspetrol
  • US
787 1.0

A liquid fuel used in car engines

is the common non-regional term for that same engine fuel
gasoline
vspetrol
  • US
318 1.6

A liquid people put in cars to make the engine run

is the same substance but often named differently across English varieties
gasolene
vspetrol
  • Archaic
3.8

A liquid that can burn and is used as fuel for cars and machines

is the same liquid but the linked form is an alternate spelling

Compounds

3 1.0

A place where you buy petrol and fill your car

1 7.1

A bottle filled with petrol and a burning rag, thrown to start a fire

1 3.2

A machine that burns petrol to make power for cars

1 2.4

A machine at a service station that pumps petrol into cars

leaded petrol
  • Archaic
5.8

Fuel that contains a small amount of lead to stop engine knocking

4.0

A device in a car that shows how much petrol is left

3.2

A device in a vehicle that shows how much fuel is left in the tank

2.9

A pipe that carries fuel from the tank to the engine

2.7

A container in a vehicle that holds petrol or gasoline for the engine

Petrol without added lead used to fuel cars

Surface Forms

petrol singular
petrols plural
gasolines plural
gasoline singular

Etymology

Petrol comes from petroleum, a word that literally means 'rock oil' from the parts petro- 'rock' and -oleum 'oil'. So petrol is the oil from the earth used as fuel for car engines.