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.

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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

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adjective

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

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.

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petrochemical Cultural  

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

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Other Word Forms

• petrochemically
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of petrochemical

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

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

petrochemical

Beyond exports to Europe, it is intended to supply natural gas to countries that currently rely on expensive imported fuels, potentially supporting new power generation, fertiliser plants, petrochemical industries and manufacturing along the Atlantic coast.

From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026

“Additionally, China has been increasingly relying on coal to produce petrochemical feedstocks,” he said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026

Reliance Industries owns the Jamnagar petrochemical complex in western India, a sprawling industrial facility described as the largest single-site crude oil refinery in the world.

From Barron's ● May 28, 2026

Many of those operations used petrochemical products and solvents such as resins, adhesives and acrylic compounds like methyl methacrylate, the chemical at the center of the Orange County crisis.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2026

In place of petrochemical fertilizers, Greenways’s organic acres are fed with compost from a nearby horse farm and by poultry manure.

From "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan