Library / English Dictionary

GAS

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected forms: gas    , gassed    , gasses    , gasses    , gassing   

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A pedal that controls the throttle valve

Example:

he stepped on the gas

Synonyms:

accelerator; accelerator pedal; gas; gas pedal; gun; throttle

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("gas" is a kind of...):

foot lever; foot pedal; pedal; treadle (a lever that is operated with the foot)

Holonyms ("gas" is a part of...):

aeroplane; airplane; plane (an aircraft that has a fixed wing and is powered by propellers or jets)

auto; automobile; car; machine; motorcar (a motor vehicle with four wheels; usually propelled by an internal combustion engine)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A state of excessive gas in the alimentary canal

Synonyms:

flatulence; flatulency; gas

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Hypernyms ("gas" is a kind of...):

physical condition; physiological condition; physiological state (the condition or state of the body or bodily functions)

Derivation:

gassy (suffering from excessive gas in the alimentary canal)

Sense 3

Meaning:

The state of matter distinguished from the solid and liquid states by: relatively low density and viscosity; relatively great expansion and contraction with changes in pressure and temperature; the ability to diffuse readily; and the spontaneous tendency to become distributed uniformly throughout any container

Synonyms:

gas; gaseous state

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Hypernyms ("gas" is a kind of...):

state; state of matter ((chemistry) the three traditional states of matter are solids (fixed shape and volume) and liquids (fixed volume and shaped by the container) and gases (filling the container))

Derivation:

gaseous (existing as or having characteristics of a gas)

gasify (turn into gas)

gassy (resembling gas)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A volatile flammable mixture of hydrocarbons (hexane and heptane and octane etc.) derived from petroleum; used mainly as a fuel in internal-combustion engines

Synonyms:

gas; gasolene; gasoline; petrol

Classified under:

Nouns denoting substances

Hypernyms ("gas" is a kind of...):

fuel (a substance that can be consumed to produce energy)

hydrocarbon (an organic compound containing only carbon and hydrogen)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "gas"):

leaded gasoline; leaded petrol (gasoline treated with a lead compound to reduce motor knocks)

napalm (gasoline jelled with aluminum soaps; highly incendiary liquid used in fire bombs and flamethrowers)

unleaded gasoline; unleaded petrol (gasoline that has not been treated with a lead compound)

Holonyms ("gas" is a substance of...):

gasohol (a gasoline substitute consisting of 90% gasoline and 10% grain alcohol from corn)

Derivation:

gasify (turn into gas)

Sense 5

Meaning:

A fluid in the gaseous state having neither independent shape nor volume and being able to expand indefinitely

Classified under:

Nouns denoting substances

Hypernyms ("gas" is a kind of...):

fluid (continuous amorphous matter that tends to flow and to conform to the outline of its container: a liquid or a gas)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "gas"):

ethene; ethylene (a flammable colorless gaseous alkene; obtained from petroleum and natural gas and used in manufacturing many other chemicals; sometimes used as an anesthetic)

air gas; producer gas (a gas made of carbon monoxide and hydrogen and nitrogen; made by passing air over hot coke)

formaldehyde; methanal (a colorless poisonous gas; made by the oxidation of methanol)

greenhouse emission; greenhouse gas (a gas that contributes to the greenhouse effect by absorbing infrared radiation)

bottled gas; liquefied petroleum gas (hydrocarbon gases, usually propane or butane, kept under pressure)

water gas (a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide with small amounts of other gases; made by blowing steam over hot coke or coal)

ideal gas; perfect gas (a hypothetical gas with molecules of negligible size that exert no intermolecular forces)

inhalant (something that is inhaled)

methane (a colorless odorless gas used as a fuel)

ozone (a colorless gas (O3) soluble in alkalis and cold water; a strong oxidizing agent; can be produced by electric discharge in oxygen or by the action of ultraviolet radiation on oxygen in the stratosphere (where it acts as a screen for ultraviolet radiation))

phosgene (a colorless poisonous gas that smells like new-mown hay; used in chemical warfare)

phosphine (a colorless gas with a strong fishy smell; used as a pesticide)

poison gas (a gas that is poisonous to breath or contact; used in chemical warfare)

propene; propylene (a flammable gas obtained by cracking petroleum; used in organic synthesis)

mephitis (a poisonous or foul smelling gas emitted from the earth)

sewer gas (foul-smelling gas that forms in sewers)

sublimate (the product of vaporization of a solid)

sulfur dioxide; sulphur dioxide (a colorless toxic gas (SO2) that occurs in the gases from volcanoes; used in many manufacturing processes and present in industrial emissions; causes acid rain)

lachrymator; lacrimator; tear gas; teargas (a gas that makes the eyes fill with tears but does not damage them; used in dispersing crowds)

atmosphere (the envelope of gases surrounding any celestial body)

argonon; inert gas; noble gas (any of the chemically inert gaseous elements of the helium group in the periodic table)

atomic number 17; chlorine; Cl (a common nonmetallic element belonging to the halogens; best known as a heavy yellow irritating toxic gas; used to purify water and as a bleaching agent and disinfectant; occurs naturally only as a salt (as in sea water))

atomic number 9; F; fluorine (a nonmetallic univalent element belonging to the halogens; usually a yellow irritating toxic flammable gas; a powerful oxidizing agent; recovered from fluorite or cryolite or fluorapatite)

atomic number 1; H; hydrogen (a nonmetallic univalent element that is normally a colorless and odorless highly flammable diatomic gas; the simplest and lightest and most abundant element in the universe)

atomic number 7; N; nitrogen (a common nonmetallic element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless inert diatomic gas; constitutes 78 percent of the atmosphere by volume; a constituent of all living tissues)

atomic number 8; O; oxygen (a nonmetallic bivalent element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless nonflammable diatomic gas; constitutes 21 percent of the atmosphere by volume; the most abundant element in the earth's crust)

butane (occurs in natural gas; used in the manufacture of rubber and fuels)

propane (colorless gas found in natural gas and petroleum; used as a fuel)

afterdamp (a toxic mixture of gases (including carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide and nitrogen) after an explosion of firedamp in a mine)

firedamp (a mixture of gases (mostly methane) that form in coal mines and become explosive when mixed with air)

arsine (a poisonous colorless flammable gas used in organic synthesis and to dope transistors and as a poison gas in warfare)

nitrogen dioxide (a highly poisonous brown gas (NO2))

nitric oxide (a poisonous red-brown gas (NO))

blow gas; blowing gas (the gas leaving a generator during a blow period)

butene; butylene (any of three isomeric hydrocarbons C4H8; all used in making synthetic rubbers)

cyanogen (a colorless toxic gas with a pungent almond odor; has been used in chemical warfare)

exhaust; exhaust fumes; fumes (gases ejected from an engine as waste products)

air (a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of)

compressed gas (gas at a high pressure that can be used as a propellant)

Derivation:

gaseous (existing as or having characteristics of a gas)

gasify (turn into gas)

Sense 6

Meaning:

A fossil fuel in the gaseous state; used for cooking and heating homes

Synonyms:

gas; natural gas

Classified under:

Nouns denoting substances

Hypernyms ("gas" is a kind of...):

fossil fuel (fuel consisting of the remains of organisms preserved in rocks in the earth's crust with high carbon and hydrogen content)

Meronyms (substance of "gas"):

methane (a colorless odorless gas used as a fuel)

Derivation:

gasify (turn into gas)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Show off

Synonyms:

blow; bluster; boast; brag; gas; gasconade; shoot a line; swash; tout; vaunt

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "gas" is one way to...):

amplify; exaggerate; hyperbolise; hyperbolize; magnify; overdraw; overstate (to enlarge beyond bounds or the truth)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "gas"):

puff (speak in a blustering or scornful manner)

crow; gloat; triumph (dwell on with satisfaction)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s PP
Somebody ----s that CLAUSE
Somebody ----s to somebody

Sense 2

Meaning:

Attack with gas; subject to gas fumes

Example:

The despot gassed the rebellious tribes

Classified under:

Verbs of fighting, athletic activities

Hypernyms (to "gas" is one way to...):

assail; attack (launch an attack or assault on; begin hostilities or start warfare with)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "gas"):

teargas (attack with teargas; subject to teargas fumes)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody

Derivation:

gassing (the deliberate act of poisoning some person or animal with gas)

Credits

 Context examples: 

The Australian team describes the membrane technology that separates hydrogen from other gases as a “watershed moment for energy.”

(Cars Powered by New Fuel Type Tested in Australia, VOA)

Rising levels of planet-warming gases may reduce key nutrient levels in food crops, according to a new study.

(Planet-Warming Gases Make Some Food Less Nutritious, Study Says, Steve Baragona/VOA)

That transition is among the most important transformations between phases (solids, liquids and gases) on our planet, where it has unique effects on climate while regulating the viability of life.

(Scientists probe the limits of ice, National Science Foundation)

This bacteria is oxidase positive, does not hydrolyze esculin, produces gas from glucose and produces indole and mannitol.

(Aeromonas jandaei, NCI Thesaurus)

But when they partly or completely block the intestines, they cause symptoms such as: • Severe abdominal pain or cramping • Vomiting • Bloating • An inability to pass gas • Constipation

(Adhesions, NIH: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)

Issue associated with the facility-supplied medical gases such as medical air, oxygen, nitrous oxide, and nitrogen.

(Medical Gas Supply Problem, Food and Drug Administration)

It is the major constituent of natural gas.

(Methane, NOAA Paleoclimate Glossary)

She closed the door behind us and showed us into a sitting-room on the right side of the hall, turning up the gas as she left us.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

An unstable free-radical gas which reacts rapidly with oxygen to form nitrogen oxides.

(Nitric Oxide, NCI Thesaurus)

A dark green colored, crystalline, inorganic compound that produces toxic gases upon heating.

(Nickelocene, NCI Thesaurus)