gas

American  

[gas] / gæs /

noun

• gases,
  plural
• gasses
  plural

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

2. any such fluid or mixture of fluids.

3. any such fluid used as an anesthetic, as nitrous oxide.

   Did the dentist give you gas for your extraction?

4. any such combustible fluid used as fuel.

   Light the gas in the oven.

5. Automotive.

   1. gasoline.

   2. Also called gas pedal. the foot-operated accelerator of an automotive vehicle.

      Take your foot off the gas.

6. flatus.

7. Coal Mining. an explosive mixture of firedamp with air.

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

9. Slang.

   1. empty talk.

   2. a person or thing that is very entertaining, pleasing, or successful.

      The party was an absolute gas, and we loved it.

   3. a person or thing that affects one strongly.

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verb (used with object)

• gasses,
  present (3rd person singular)
• gassed,
  past participle,  past
• gassing
  present participle

1. to supply with gas.

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

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

4. to treat or impregnate with gas.

5. Slang.

   1. to talk nonsense or falsehood to.

   2. to amuse or affect strongly.

      Her weird clothes really gas me.

verb (used without object)

• gasses,
  present (3rd person singular)
• gassed,
  past participle,  past
• gassing
  present participle

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

2. Slang.

   1. to indulge in idle, empty talk.

   2. to become drunk (often followed byup ).

verb phrase

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

idioms

1. step on the gas, 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.

gas British  

/ ɡæs /

noun

1. 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 phase Compare liquid solid

2. any substance that is gaseous at room temperature and atmospheric pressure

3. any gaseous substance that is above its critical temperature and therefore not liquefiable by pressure alone Compare vapour

4. 1. a fossil fuel in the form of a gas, used as a source of domestic and industrial heat See also coal gas natural gas

   2. ( as modifier )

      a gas cooker

      gas fire

5. a gaseous anaesthetic, such as nitrous oxide

6. mining firedamp or the explosive mixture of firedamp and air

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

8. informal

   1. to increase the speed of a motor vehicle; accelerate

   2. to hurry

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

10. informal idle talk or boasting

11. slang a delightful or successful person or thing

    his latest record is a gas

12. an informal name for flatus

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verb

1. (tr) to provide or fill with gas

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

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

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

5. informal to talk in an idle or boastful way (to a person)

6. slang (tr) to thrill or delight

gas Scientific  

/ găs /

1. 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.

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gas Cultural  

1. 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.

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gas More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing gas

• cook with gas
• run out of steam (gas)

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nongas
  noun
• gasless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• gases
  plural
• gasses
  plural

Participles

• gassing
  present
• gassed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• gas
  simple
• gasses
  simple
• have gassed
  perfect
• has gassed
  perfect
• am gassing
  progressive
• are gassing
  progressive
• is gassing
  progressive
• have been gassing
  perfect progressive
• has been gassing
  perfect progressive

Past

• gassed
  simple
• had gassed
  perfect
• was gassing
  progressive
• were gassing
  progressive
• had been gassing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will gas
  simple
• will have gassed
  perfect
• will be gassing
  progressive
• will have been gassing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of gas

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

Explanation

Matter can be found in solid, liquid, or gas form. The air you breathe in and the carbon dioxide you breathe out, are both examples of gas. Gasoline is a kind of a gas that you use as car fuel, and when people say they need gas, usually this is the kind they're talking about. They're probably not talking about the digestive kind of gas that causes you to fart. There are poisons that can be released as gas, and you might hear about riot police somewhere gassing people: spraying them with harmful gas. Gas has no fixed shape and changes density easily.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

gas gases gasses gassed gassing

Central Command, said on Sept. 19 that commercial transits and the volume of oil, cargo and liquefied natural gas moving through Hormuz over the past two weeks have reached their highest levels in six months.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 27, 2026

Pictures from the scene showed emergency service workers searching through rubble, with a gas leak the suspected cause of the blast.

From BBC ● Sep. 26, 2026

"It was interesting to see that some of the same signatures that we observe in modern oil and gas basins are also there and preserved in 2-billion-year-old samples."

From Science Daily ● Sep. 26, 2026

A citizens' group said on social media that one resident in the street where the explosion happened had alerted authorities after smelling a possible gas leak.

From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2026

“I’m not supposed to know people’s names, but you hear things. He rides around wearing a gas mask.”

From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin

The gases then moved upward through the sediment and eventually reached microbes living near the seafloor that consumed methane.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 26, 2026

As part of a “dairy sustainability initiative,” the mandatory payments were funding efforts to “regenerate the environment,” reduce greenhouse gases and environmental impact, and support “energy audits.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026

When thermal runaway starts, the process can continue for days, with the potential for batteries to release toxic gases such as hydrogen fluoride, hydrogen chloride and carbon monoxide.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026

But scientists warn that average temperatures will keep increasing while countries keep adding greenhouse gases to the atmosphere.

From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026

They force out the poisonous gases that cause fermentation of food and thoroughly clean, renovate, and restore the stomach so that it can digest food without all that excess gas.

From "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool

Unlike visible light, radio waves from hot gasses are not blocked that easily by cosmic dust.

From Space Scoop ● Mar. 27, 2025

The pyrolysis plants - often in rural backwaters - are akin to homemade pressure cookers and produce dangerous gasses and chemicals.

From BBC ● Mar. 25, 2025

"Current scientific models in the presence of ongoing rises in atmospheric greenhouse gasses do not predict this threatening acceleration," Professor Smith said.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 26, 2024

One of her top goals as director is to accelerate the transition to zero-emission transportation to curb greenhouse gasses.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 27, 2024

Then the enthusiasm of the Grail had burned the bad gasses of the air into a short-lived beauty.

From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White

Fitness is next: He looked a little gassed against Zverev, and admitted as much.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026

“We were gassed the first time because that was right after we played Loyola,” Mustangs setter Jake Newman said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 21, 2026

“I’m not sure why Taylor picked such a rundown place to film, but I’m gassed about it,” said Hogg, 24.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 5, 2026

While showing few outward signs of struggling with the foot blisters which troubled him in the quarter-finals, Djokovic regularly looked gassed against Sinner before finding further reserves to win in four hours and nine minutes.

From BBC ● Jan. 31, 2026

This was of course after they had already gassed each other up, talking to each other like there was no one else on the track but them.

From "Patina" by Jason Reynolds

Charging may require a bit more time than gassing up, but it’s a chance to catch up on news and email.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026

Some travelers say they can’t afford not to travel, however, so they’re putting all options on the table — from booking rail tickets to gassing up their cars.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 8, 2025

In addition, the method used to kill the infected chickens — carbon dioxide gassing — required that workers move “from chicken to chicken” increasing their “degree of interaction with each potentially infected bird.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 16, 2024

Last week, the UN's High Commissioner for Human Rights urged a halt to the execution, saying that gassing Smith could amount to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment under international human rights law.

From BBC ● Jan. 25, 2024

In the morning, after gassing up, I headed straight west along the Rainy River, which separates Minnesota from Canada, and which for me separated one life from another.

From "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien

Related Words

• smoke
• vapor