gas

[gas]

noun, plural gas·es or gas·ses.

Physics. a substance possessing perfect molecular mobility and the property of indefinite expansion, as opposed to a solid or liquid.

any such fluid or mixture of fluids.

any such fluid used as an anesthetic, as nitrous oxide: Did the dentist give you gas for your extraction?

any such combustible fluid used as fuel: Light the gas in the oven.

Automotive.

gasoline.
Also called gas pedal.the foot-operated accelerator of an automotive vehicle: Take your foot off the gas.

flatus.

Coal Mining. an explosive mixture of firedamp with air.

an aeriform fluid or a mistlike assemblage of fine particles suspended in air, used in warfare to asphyxiate, poison, or stupefy an enemy.

Slang.

empty talk.
a person or thing that is very entertaining, pleasing, or successful: The party was an absolute gas, and we loved it.
a person or thing that affects one strongly.

verb (used with object), gassed, gas·sing.

to supply with gas.

to overcome, poison, or asphyxiate with gas or fumes.

to singe (yarns or fabrics) with a gas flame to remove superfluous fibers.

to treat or impregnate with gas.

Slang.

to talk nonsense or falsehood to.
to amuse or affect strongly: Her weird clothes really gas me.

verb (used without object), gassed, gas·sing.

to give off gas, as a storage battery being charged.

Slang.

to indulge in idle, empty talk.
to become drunk (often followed by up).

Verb Phrases

gas up, to fill the gasoline tank of an automobile, truck, or other vehicle.

Nearby words

Idioms

step on the gas, Informal. to increase the speed of one's movement or activity; hurry: We'd better step on the gas or we'll be late for the concert.

Origin of gas

1650–60; coined by J. B. van Helmont (1577–1644), Flemish chemist; suggested by Greek cháos atmosphere

Related formsgas·less, adjectivenon·gas, noun, plural non·gas·es.

Can be confusedfluid gas liquid (see synonym study at liquid)

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

Examples from the Web for gasses

Some eruption, perhaps, this we have seen—an ignition of gasses in the upper air—who knows?
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, November, 1930|Various
Twelve or more evacuations may take place during a day; as a rule they are much increased by gasses and are of bad odor.
Prof. Koch's Method to Cure Tuberculosis Popularly Treated|Max Birnbaum
It absorbs the gasses produced by the fermentation of undigested food.
Searchlights on Health: Light on Dark Corners|B.G. Jefferis
The gasses rolled to the supporting trenches and made life unbearable.
The Red Watch|J. A. Currie

Gasses party and took the water where they pursued it and cought it.
The Journals of Lewis and Clark|Meriwether Lewis and William Clark

British Dictionary definitions for gasses

gas

noun plural gases or gasses

a substance in a physical state in which it does not resist change of shape and will expand indefinitely to fill any container. If very high pressure is applied a gas may become liquid or solid, otherwise its density tends towards that of the condensed phaseCompare liquid (def. 1), solid (def. 1)

any substance that is gaseous at room temperature and atmospheric pressure

any gaseous substance that is above its critical temperature and therefore not liquefiable by pressure aloneCompare vapour (def. 2)

a fossil fuel in the form of a gas, used as a source of domestic and industrial heatSee also coal gas, natural gas
(as modifier)a gas cooker; gas fire

a gaseous anaesthetic, such as nitrous oxide

mining firedamp or the explosive mixture of firedamp and air

the usual US, Canadian, and New Zealand word for petrol See also gasoline

step on the gas informal

to increase the speed of a motor vehicle; accelerate
to hurry

a toxic or suffocating substance in suspension in air used against an enemy

informal idle talk or boasting

slang a delightful or successful person or thinghis latest record is a gas

US an informal name for flatus

verb gases, gasses, gassing or gassed

(tr) to provide or fill with gas

(tr) to subject to gas fumes, esp so as to asphyxiate or render unconscious

(intr) to give off gas, as in the charging of a battery

(tr) (in textiles) to singe (fabric) with a flame from a gas burner to remove unwanted fibres

(intr foll by to) informal to talk in an idle or boastful way (to a person)

(tr) slang, mainly US and Canadian to thrill or delight

Derived Formsgasless, adjective

Word Origin for gas

C17 (coined by J. B. van Helmont (1577–1644), Flemish chemist): modification of Greek khaos atmosphere

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

Word Origin and History for gasses

gas

1650s, from Dutch gas, probably from Greek khaos "empty space" (see chaos). The sound of Dutch "g" is roughly equivalent to that of Greek "kh." First used by Flemish chemist J.B. van Helmont (1577-1644), probably influenced by Paracelsus, who used khaos in an occult sense of "proper elements of spirits" or "ultra-rarified water," which was van Helmont's definition of gas.

Modern scientific sense began 1779, with later specialization to "combustible mix of vapors" (1794, originally coal gas); "anesthetic" (1894, originally nitrous oxide); and "poison gas" (1900). Meaning "intestinal vapors" is from 1882. "The success of this artificial word is unique" [Weekley]. Slang sense of "empty talk" is from 1847; slang meaning "something exciting or excellent" first attested 1953, from earlier hepster slang gasser in the same sense (1944). Gas also meant "fun, a joke" in Anglo-Irish and was used so by Joyce (1914). As short for gasoline, it is American English, first recorded 1905.

gas

1886, "to supply with gas," from gas (n.). Sense of "poison with gas" is from 1889 as an accidental thing, from 1915 as a military attack. Related: Gassed; gassing.

Medicine definitions for gasses

gas

[găs]

n. pl. gas•es

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.

A substance in the gaseous state.

A gaseous fuel, such as natural gas.

Gasoline.

A gaseous asphyxiant, an irritant, or a poison.

A gaseous anesthetic, such as nitrous oxide.

Flatulence.

Flatus.

v.

To treat chemically with gas.

To overcome, disable, or kill with poisonous fumes.

To give off gas.

Science definitions for gasses

gas

[găs]

One of four main states of matter, composed of molecules in constant random motion. Unlike a solid, a gas has no fixed shape and will take on the shape of the space available. Unlike a liquid, the intermolecular forces are very small; it has no fixed volume and will expand to fill the space available.

Related formsgaseous adjective (găs′ē-əs, găsh′əs)

Culture definitions for gasses

gas

In physics, one of the phases of matter. The atoms or molecules in gases are more widely spaced than in solids or liquids and suffer only occasional collisions with one another.

Idioms and Phrases with gasses

gas

In addition to the idiom beginning with gas

gas up

also see:

cook with gas
run out of steam (gas)

gas

noun, plural gas·es or gas·ses.

verb (used with object), gassed, gas·sing.

verb (used without object), gassed, gas·sing.

Verb Phrases

RELATED CONTENT

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Idioms

Origin of gas

Examples from the Web for gasses

gas

noun plural gases or gasses

verb gases, gasses, gassing or gassed

Word Origin for gas

gas

gas

gas

n. pl. gas•es

v.

gas

gas

gas