methyl alcohol

American

noun

Chemistry.

a colorless, volatile, water-soluble, poisonous liquid, CH 4 O, obtained by the destructive distillation of wood or the incomplete oxidation of natural gas, or produced synthetically from carbon monoxide and hydrogen, used chiefly as a solvent, a fuel, and an automobile antifreeze and in the synthesis of formaldehyde.

methyl alcohol British

noun

another name for methanol

"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

methyl alcohol Scientific

See methanol

Etymology

Origin of methyl alcohol

First recorded in 1840–50

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.

In 2002, fire ignited several 10,000-gallon tanks of methyl alcohol.

From Washington Times • May 12, 2016

Recommend ReportPermalinkreply Junoir in reply to Seven839 Oct 30th 2012 17:36 GMT "BTW corruption in the Czech republic has reached new levels...after methyl alcohol fiasco now the new accusation about the vegetable oils containing pesticides".

From Economist • Oct. 19, 2012

The EPA regulates his factory because one of its by-products is methyl alcohol, which can contribute to ozone pollution.

From Time Magazine Archive

To control methyl alcohol releases, Ballenger had to build a catalytic converter for $600,000 and spend $500,000 to make airtight the room where he prints labels on the packaging.

From Time Magazine Archive

An isomer of chloral, parachloralide, is made by passing excess of dry chlorine into absolute methyl alcohol.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 6, Slice 3 "Chitral" to "Cincinnati" by Various

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023