crude oil
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of crude oil
First recorded in 1860–65
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Now, according to a state website, in Southern California, there are four major refineries that handle about two-thirds of the state’s crude oil capacity.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026
—In early European trading on Tuesday, Brent crude oil rose 3.5% to $86.23 a barrel, while the U.S. oil gauge West Texas Intermediate gained 3.2% to $80.65 a barrel.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
Energy experts see a general pattern in prices for crude oil and gasoline in which a $10 increase in crude usually translates into an increase of about 25 cents at the pump.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 14, 2026
On Monday, Brent crude oil prices rose more than 3% to $78.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026
A gasket blows five thousand feet underwater beneath an oil rig off the coast of Louisiana, sending millions of barrels of crude oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
