hydrocarbons
CulturalDiscover More
Many hydrocarbons are used as fuels. Some examples of hydrocarbon fuels are the components of gasoline; methane, which is the main ingredient of natural gas; and some components of wood.
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.
Fifty years from now, people are going to be amazed that we burned these rare, useful hydrocarbons for fuel, when the sun was just sitting up there providing an essentially infinite source of energy.
From Los Angeles Times • May 14, 2026
France only generates a fraction of its electricity from hydrocarbons, thanks to its extensive nuclear power generation.
From Barron's • Apr. 29, 2026
These included polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which indicate the intensity of slash-and-burn fires; leaf waxes, which reflect vegetation and rainfall patterns; and fecal stanols, which help estimate population size.
From Science Daily • Apr. 27, 2026
Conversely, damaged export facilities mean hydrocarbons cannot be safely loaded onto tankers.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 8, 2026
Storage of the chlorinated hydrocarbons, as we have seen, is cumulative, beginning with the smallest intake.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
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.
