butane

[ byoo-teyn, byoo-teyn ]

/ ˈbyu teɪn, byuˈteɪn /

noun Chemistry.

a colorless, flammable gas, C4H10, a saturated aliphatic existing in two isometric forms: used chiefly in the manufacture of rubber and as fuel.

Nearby words

but good, but-, butabarbital sodium, butadiene, butamben, butane, butanoic acid, butanol, butanone, butazolidin, butch

Origin of butane

First recorded in 1870–75; but(yl) + -ane

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for butane

Butane purchased at a hardware store often contains chemicals like benzene, which is known to cause cancer.
Hey Buddy, Wanna Dab? Inside The Mainstream Explosion of Cannabis Concentrates|Valerie Vande Panne|December 21, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Recently, at a pot-centered radio program, someone offered me a “dab” of butane honey oil (BHO)—a concentrated form of cannabis.
Hey Buddy, Wanna Dab? Inside The Mainstream Explosion of Cannabis Concentrates|Valerie Vande Panne|December 21, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Unable to afford electricity, butane, or propane, the students, like their neighbors, relied on wood for their cooking.
Claremont McKenna Students Try Life on $1 a Day in ‘Living on One’|Robert Bryce|October 3, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Now they heat and cook with butane or electricity which comes from Silver City.
The Pinos Altos Story|Dorothy Watson

British Dictionary definitions for butane

butane

/ (ˈbjuːteɪn, bjuːˈteɪn) /

noun

a colourless flammable gaseous alkane that exists in two isomeric forms, both of which occur in natural gas. The stable isomer, n -butane, is used mainly in the manufacture of rubber and fuels (such as Calor Gas). Formula: C 4 H 10

Word Origin for butane

C19: from but (yl) + -ane

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Medicine definitions for butane

butane

[ byōō′tān′ ]

n.

Either of two isomers of a gaseous hydrocarbon produced synthetically from petroleum and used as a refrigerant, as a aerosol propellant, and in the manufacture of synthetic rubber.

Science definitions for butane

butane

[ byōō′tān′ ]

An organic compound found in natural gas and produced from petroleum. Butane is used as a household fuel, refrigerant, and propellant in aerosol cans. It is the fourth member of the alkane series. Chemical formula: C4H10.