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petrochemical

American  
[pe-troh-kem-i-kuhl] / ˌpɛ troʊˈkɛm ɪ kəl /

noun

  1. a chemical substance obtained from petroleum or natural gas, as gasoline, kerosene, or petrolatum.

adjective

  1. of or relating to petrochemistry or a petrochemical.

petrochemical British  
/ ˌpɛtrəʊˈkɛmɪkəl /

noun

  1. any substance, such as acetone or ethanol, obtained from petroleum or natural gas

"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

adjective

  1. of, concerned with, or obtained from petrochemicals or related to petrochemistry

"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
petrochemical Scientific  
/ pĕt′rō-kĕm′ĭ-kəl /

  1. Any of a large number of chemicals made from petroleum or natural gas. Important petrochemicals include benzene, ammonia, acetylene, and polystyrene. Petrochemicals are used to produce a wide variety of materials, such as plastics, explosives, fertilizers, and synthetic fibers.

petrochemical Cultural  

  1. Any material made from substances found in oil or natural gas. Most plastics are petrochemicals.

Other Word Forms

  • petrochemically adverb

Etymology

Origin of petrochemical

First recorded in 1910–15; petro- 2 + chemical

Vocabulary lists containing petrochemical

Earth Science - Middle School

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Natural Resources and the Environment - Middle School and High School

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Earth Science - High School

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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.

Granted that cease-fire still has the Strait of Hormuz blocked up, and fuel consumers are beginning to act: airlines including Lufthansa are reducing flights as petrochemical producers in Asia begin to scale back operations.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 22, 2026

When the Strait of Hormuz is functioning normally, petrochemical and fertilizer trade routes will return — though maybe never to 100%.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 18, 2026

Fears about a shortage of naphtha - a petrochemical produced from crude oil and a key raw ingredient in plastics - are also simmering in Japan.

From BBC • Apr. 16, 2026

Drug prices are “deeply tied to petrochemical inputs and the energy-intensive processes that produce them,” said Steve Suter, chief operating officer of MacroHealth.

From Barron's • Apr. 15, 2026

The Goodmans estimate that this has eliminated some 270,000 pounds of pesticide and 8 million pounds of petrochemical fertilizer that would otherwise have been applied to those fields.

From "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan

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.