petroleum English · revision 14975

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=probably before 1425|origins=grc πέτρα}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: UK /pəˈtrəʊ.li.əm/, US /pəˈtroʊ.li.əm/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|la-med|petroleum]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)^(MWU 2024) from [[m|la|petra|t=rock]] and [[m|la|oleum|t=oil]] (see [[oil]]),^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) the first from [[grc|πέτρα|tr=pétrā]].^(Barnhart 1988)^(NODE 1998)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Mineral oil found in rock: probably before 1425, in a translation of Chauliac's Grande Chirurgie, in Barnhart; the early 15th century in Etymonline,^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) which notes Anglo-French use in the mid-14th century.^(Etymonline) The OED's first quotation is dated 1348–9.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ According to the Century Dictionary of 1895, the Persians, Greeks and Romans knew it as naphtha, and the name petroleum was not used in classical times.^(Etymonline) Commercial production and refining began in 1859 in western Pennsylvania.^(Etymonline) Attributive uses such as ''petroleum lamp'' are recorded from 1882.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1348–9 – petroleum (OED).^(OED 1989)

+ * probably before 1425 – in Chauliac's Grande Chirurgie.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1859 – commercial production begins.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1882 – attributive uses.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A thick, flammable mixture of hydrocarbons found naturally beneath the earth's surface, separated by distillation into fuels such as petrol, kerosene and fuel oil; crude oil.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[petroleous]]

+ * [[petrol]]

+ * [[petroleum ether]]

+ * [[petroleum jelly]]

+ * [[liquefied petroleum gas]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[linoleum]]

+ * [[oleic]]

+ * [[oleo]]

+ * [[oleo oil]]

+ * [[oleo-]]

+ * [[oil]]

+ * [[petrify]]

+ * [[Peter]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}