diesel
adjective
noting a machine or vehicle powered by a diesel engine.
diesel
1 American
[dee-zuhl, -suhl]
/ ˈdi zəl, -səl /
Or
Diesel
adjective
-
noting a machine or vehicle powered by a diesel engine.
diesel locomotive.
-
of or relating to a diesel engine.
diesel fuel.
Diesel
2
American
[dee-zuhl, -suhl]
/ ˈdi zəl, -səl /
noun
diesel
1
British
/ ˈdiːzəl /
noun
-
See diesel engine
-
a ship, locomotive, lorry, etc, driven by a diesel engine
-
informal short for diesel oil
-
slang any cola drink
spook and diesel
-
See suck
Diesel
2
British
/ ˈdiːzəl /
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of diesel
After R. Diesel, the engine's inventor
Explanation
A diesel is a type of engine that produces enough heat to burn fuel and power a vehicle. Most diesels run on very thick, heavy oil. Large trucks use diesels — also known as diesel engines — and so do some cars, trains, and ships. The earliest diesel was developed in the late 19th century, and its invention is credited to the German engineer Rudolph Diesel, although other inventors laid the groundwork with their development of a very similar type of engine.
Vocabulary lists containing diesel
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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.
See Examples For:
Heavy-duty trucks, which traditionally run on diesel, are an outsize source of air pollution.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026
At Primus Ceramics, located near the city of Aveiro, in central Portugal, a diesel generator saved the day during last year's blackout.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
The country sells gasoline, diesel and jet fuel and is a top exporter of petrochemical feedstocks, such as ethylene, that are used for manufacturing plastics, packaging materials and other everyday goods.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026
Green is good, but it’s better wildlife encounters that might eventually relegate diesel to travel’s endangered species list.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
There was a smell of cars and diesel.
From "Life Is So Good" by George Dawson
Murdoch is well known in Peterborough and in February he hosted an exhibition, Diesel Streets, celebrating more than two decades of graffiti and the city's street art culture.
From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026
Diesel, the fuel of choice for heavy-duty commercial trucks, is averaging $5.62 a gallon nationwide, compared with an average of $5.30 a gallon just a month ago, according to AAA.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 28, 2026
Diesel buyers are competing for shrinking supply amid disruptions in Russia and the Middle East, with the U.S. at the center of a scramble that could intensify into the winter.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
Richard Turner, who owns Diesel in Brentwood, was among a small group of store owners who decided to organize the event.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
“You are entertaining. So Bulgu will give you two choices,” the monster says in that voice that would make Vin Diesel jealous.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
Replacing the 200,000 buses with another round of health-hazardous diesels would cost between $60 billion to $80 billion; after accounting for rollout costs, full electric replacement would cost about 2.5 times as much.
From Salon ● May 23, 2024
He added that even after that, petrol and diesels cars would still be able to be sold second hand, saying a similar approach is being taken in countries such as Germany, France and Spain.
From BBC ● Sep. 20, 2023
Had they been conventional diesels, they would have created a smelly cacophony as they idled.
From Washington Post ● Oct. 26, 2022
Non-profit RMI said the IRA's up to $40,000 Qualified Commercial Clean Vehicle tax credit "will turbocharge adoption of electric medium-duty and heavy-duty trucks." and will electric trucks cheaper to operate than diesels in most cases.
From Reuters ● Sep. 21, 2022
“She’s forty-six feet. Twin diesels, eight hundred horses.”
From "Flush" by Carl Hiaasen
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.
