coal tar
1
5.2
- noun
- /koʊl tɑr/
- Specialized
:
hulla de carbón
- Coal tar derivatives formed a chemical family that Hofmann called "aromatic" because they smelled sweet.
Examples
-
Coal tar can cause birth defects.
Fiction book (1994) -
The thick, dark liquid known as coal tar is commonly used in the production of various dyes.
-
There was one coal tar derivative that seemed especially promising.
Academic text (2010) -
Many of those sites are now brownfields contaminated with coal tar and other toxins.
Academic text (2012) -
Artificial dyestuffs made from coal tar became more popular than he could have dreamed, prompting a whole new industry to make them.
Academic text (2010) -
An unwanted by-product of the heated coal was a thick, viscous waste product, coal tar.
Academic text (2010) -
Hofmann set one of his young students, William Henry Perkin, to the task of transforming sludgy coal tar into lifesaving medicine.
Academic text (2010) -
Workers at the factory handle coal tar carefully because it can be hazardous to health.
-
Hofmann set one of his young students, William Henry Perkin, to the task of transforming sludgy coal tar into lifesaving medicine.
Synonyms
65
4.1
A thick dark sticky substance used to make roads and roofs waterproof
How Thick
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound 'coal tar' literally denotes tar that comes from coal, so a B1 learner who knows 'coal' and 'tar' can readily infer it is the viscous substance obtained from coal. This is a straightforward noun–noun compound following common compositional patterns (and parallels in many languages), making the meaning transparent.
Etymology
Coal tar comes from heating coal until a thick, black tar drips out. That sticky liquid was used to 'preserve' wood, make dyes, and in some 'medicine', so the name now means the dark, sticky product made from coal.