coal

American  

[kohl] / koʊl /

noun

1. a black or dark-brown combustible mineral substance consisting of carbonized vegetable matter, used as a fuel.

2. a piece of glowing, charred, or burned wood or other combustible substance.

3. charcoal.

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verb (used with object)

1. to burn to coal or charcoal.

2. to provide with coal.

verb (used without object)

1. to take in coal for fuel.

idioms

1. heap coals of fire on someone's head, to repay evil with good in order to make one's enemy repent.

2. rake / haul / drag / call / take over the coals, to reprimand; scold.

   They were raked over the coals for turning out slipshod work.

coal British  

/ kəʊl /

noun

1. 1. a combustible compact black or dark-brown carbonaceous rock formed from compaction of layers of partially decomposed vegetation: a fuel and a source of coke, coal gas, and coal tar See also anthracite bituminous coal lignite peat 1

   2. ( as modifier )

      coal cellar

      coal merchant

      coal mine

      coal dust

2. one or more lumps of coal

3. short for charcoal

4. something supplied where it is already plentiful

5. to reprimand someone

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verb

1. to take in, provide with, or turn into coal

coal Scientific  

/ kōl /

1. A dark-brown to black solid substance formed from the compaction and hardening of fossilized plant parts in the presence of water and in the absence of air. Carbonaceous material accounts for more than 50 percent of coal's weight and more than 70 percent of its volume. Coal is widely used as a fuel, and its combustion products are used as raw material for a variety of products including cement, asphalt, wallboard and plastics.

2. See more at anthracite bituminous coal lignite

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coal More Idioms  

1. see carry coals to Newcastle; rake over the coals.

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Other Word Forms

• coalless adjective
• coaly adjective

Etymology

Origin of coal

before 900; Middle English cole, Old English col; cognate with Dutch kool, German Kohle, Old Norse kol

Explanation

Coal is a mineral, a black rock that can be extracted from the earth and burned for fuel. Most of the electricity that's produced in the world is powered by the burning of coal. Coal may seem like an old-fashioned fuel, making you think of steam locomotives that ran on coal, or coal fires heating homes in the nineteenth century. Some people still burn coal in stoves today, although most coal is burned on a much larger scale, generating electricity for entire towns and cities. You can also use the noun coal to mean a glowing ember in your fireplace or backyard grill. In Old English, it was col, from a Germanic root.

Example Sentences

China, for example, still relies on coal for more than half of its energy, meaning emissions simply have shifted abroad rather than been reduced altogether.

From BBC • Apr. 15, 2026

Stegra, formerly known as H2 Green Steel, is building a large-scale steel mill in northern Sweden that will replace the coal traditionally used for iron ore-based steelmaking with hydrogen produced from renewable energy.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026

While China relies on oil imports, "it mitigates this exposure through diversified suppliers, ties with Iran, substantial strategic reserves and continued reliance on coal", she said.

From Barron's • Apr. 14, 2026

UBS initiates coverage of DBI—which owns the Dalrymple Bay coal export terminal in Australia—with a buy rating and A$5.75 target.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 10, 2026

And I don’t have a sack of coal this time.

From "The Light in Hidden Places" by Sharon Cameron