gas

English Online Dictionary. What means gas‎? What does gas mean?

English

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, General American) enPR: găs, IPA^(key): /ɡæs/
• (New York City, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Baltimore) IPA^(key): /ˈɡɛəs/
• enPR: găz, IPA^(key): /ɡæz/ (regional)
• Rhymes: -æs, -æz

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Dutch gas, coined by chemist Jan Baptist van Helmont in Ortus Medicinae. Derived from Ancient Greek χάος (kháos, “chasm, void, empty space”); perhaps also inspired by geest (“breath, vapour, spirit”). Doublet of chaos. First attested in 1648.

Noun

gas (countable and uncountable, plural gases or gasses)

2. (uncountable, physical chemistry) Matter in an intermediate state between liquid and plasma that can be contained only if it is fully surrounded by a solid (or in a bubble of liquid, or held together by gravitational pull); it can condense into a liquid, or can (rarely) become a solid directly by deposition.

   Synonyms: vapor, vapour

   1. (uncountable) A flammable gaseous hydrocarbon or hydrocarbon mixture used as a fuel, e.g. for cooking, heating, electricity generation or as a fuel in internal combustion engines in vehicles, especially natural gas.

   2. (uncountable, military) Poison gas.

3. (countable, physical chemistry) A chemical element or compound in such a state.

4. (countable) A hob on a gas cooker.

5. (uncountable) Methane or other waste gases trapped in one's belly as a result of the digestive process; flatus.

   Synonym: wind
6. (business, often attributive) The supply of natural gas, as a utility.
7. (slang, dated) A humorous or entertaining event, person, or thing.
8. (slang) Frothy or boastful talk; chatter.
9. (baseball) A fastball.

10. (medicine, colloquial) Arterial or venous blood gas.

Derived terms

Translations

See also

• fluid
• liquid
• solid

Verb

gas (third-person singular simple present gasses or gases, present participle gassing, simple past and past participle gassed)

1. (transitive) To attack or kill with poison gas.

2. (transitive) To use poison gas in (a volume or area) to attack or kill someone or something.
3. (intransitive, slang) To talk in a boastful or vapid way; to chatter.
4. (transitive, slang) To impose upon by talking boastfully.
5. (intransitive) To emit gas.

6. (transitive) To impregnate with gas.

7. (transitive) To singe, as in a gas flame, so as to remove loose fibers.

Translations

Etymology 2

Clipping of gasoline. Slang forms popularized on TikTok by Gen Z.

Noun

gas (countable and uncountable, plural gases or gasses)

2. (uncountable, Canada, US, New Zealand) Gasoline, a light derivative of petroleum used as fuel.

   Synonyms: (US) gasoline, (British) petrol; see also Thesaurus:petroleum

3. (uncountable, by extension) Ellipsis of gas pedal; accelerator, throttle.
5. (uncountable, cryptocurrencies) An internal virtual currency used in Ethereum to pay for certain operations, such as blockchain transactions.

   Coordinate term: Ether

   gas fee
6. (slang, uncountable) Marijuana, typically of high quality.

Usage notes

• Unlike most terms derived from gasoline, the use of gas to mean gas pedal is not restricted to North America, and is also used in the UK; particularly among driving instructors and motoring enthusiasts.

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

gas (third-person singular simple present gasses or gases, present participle gassing, simple past and past participle gassed)

1. (US) To increase the fuel flow to a vehicle's engine in order to accelerate it.

   Synonyms: hit the gas, step on the gas

2. (US) To fill (a vehicle's fuel tank) with fuel.

   Synonym: refuel

   (transitive or reflexive) To die through the inhalation of a gas.

Derived terms

• gas and dash, gas-and-dash
• gas and go, gas-and-go
• gas up

Translations

Adjective

gas (comparative gasser, superlative gassest)

1. (slang, uncountable) Of high quality.

Etymology 3

Compare the slang usage of "a gas", above.

Adjective

gas (comparative gasser, superlative gassest)

1. (slang) Comical, zany; fun, amusing.

Anagrams

• AGs, GSA, sag, AGS, Ags., SAG, ags, Sag, ASG, SGA

Afrikaans

Etymology 1

From Dutch gast.

Noun

gas (plural gaste)

1. guest

Etymology 2

From Dutch gas.

Noun

gas (plural gasse)

1. gas (substance in gaseous phase)

Basque

Pronunciation

Noun

gas inan

1. gas

Declension

Derived terms

• gaseoso

Catalan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic, Valencia) [ˈɡas]

Noun

gas m (plural gasos)

1. gas

Derived terms

Related terms

• gasificar
• gasolina

Further reading

• “gas” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “gas”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2025
• “gas” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “gas” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Chinese

Etymology

From English gas.

Pronunciation

Noun

gas

1. (Hong Kong Cantonese) gas (fuel)

Derived terms

Danish

Etymology

From Dutch gas.

Noun

gas c or n (singular definite gassen, plural indefinite gasser)

1. (common) gas; a state of matter
2. (common) gas; a compound or element in such a state
3. (common) gas; gaseous fuels
4. (common) gas pedal, acceleration
5. (neuter, informal) drivel, nonsense

   Synonyms: vrøvl, sjov

Declension

Derived terms

Synonyms

• luftart

References

• “gas” in Den Danske Ordbog

Dutch

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɣɑs/
• Hyphenation: gas
• Rhymes: -ɑs

Etymology 1

Coined by chemist Jan Baptist van Helmont in Ortus Medicinae (1648), by way of deliberate similarity to Ancient Greek χάος (kháos, “chasm, void, chaos”).

Noun

gas n (plural gassen, diminutive gasje n)

1. gas
2. liquefied petroleum gas

   Synonyms: autogas, LPG

Derived terms

Descendants

Etymology 2

From Middle Dutch gasse (“unpaved street”), from Middle High German gazze, from Old High German gazza, from Proto-Germanic *gatwǭ.

Noun

gas f (plural gassen, diminutive gasje n)

1. unpaved street

Etymology 3

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

gas

1. inflection of gassen:
   1. first-person singular present indicative
   2. (in case of inversion) second-person singular present indicative
   3. imperative

Galician

Noun

gas m (plural gases)

1. gas

   Synonym: vapor

Derived terms

• gas nobre

Related terms

• gasoso

Hamer-Banna

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡás/

Noun

gas

1. threshold of a hut

References

• Petrollino, Sara (2016) A Grammar of Hamar: A South Omotic language of Ethiopia‎^[11], Leiden University

Icelandic

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kaːs/
• Rhymes: -aːs

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Dutch gas.

Noun

gas n (genitive singular gass, nominative plural gös)

1. gas (state of matter)

Declension

Derived terms

• táragas

Etymology 2

Borrowed from French gaze.

Noun

gas n (genitive singular gass, no plural)

1. gauze

Declension

Derived terms

• gasbleia

Anagrams

• sag

Indonesian

Etymology

From Dutch gas (“gas”), a term coined by chemist Jan Baptist van Helmont. Perhaps inspired by geest (“breath, vapour, spirit”) or by chaos (“chaos”), from Ancient Greek χάος (kháos, “chasm, void”).

Pronunciation

• (Standard Indonesian) IPA^(key): /ˈɡas/ [ˈɡas]
• Rhymes: -as
• Syllabification: gas

Noun

gas (countable and uncountable, plural gas-gas)

1. (physical chemistry) gas, matter in an intermediate state between liquid and plasma

Derived terms

Compounds

Verb

gas

1. (colloquial) to hit the gas, to accelerate

   Synonym: ngegas

Further reading

• “gas” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.

Interlingua

Noun

gas (plural gases)

1. gas

Irish

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• (Munster, Aran) IPA^(key): /ɡɑsˠ/
• (Connemara, Ulster) IPA^(key): /ɡasˠ/

Noun

gas m (genitive singular gais, nominative plural gais or gasa)

1. stalk, stem
2. sprig, shoot, frond
3. (figuratively) stripling; scion

Declension

Derived terms

Mutation

References

Further reading

• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977) “gas”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
• de Bhaldraithe, Tomás (1959) “gas”, in English-Irish Dictionary, An Gúm
• “gas”, in New English-Irish Dictionary, Foras na Gaeilge, 2013-2025

Italian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɡas/
• Rhymes: -as
• Hyphenation: gàs

Noun

gas m (uncountable)

1. gas (state of matter, petroleum)
2. carbon dioxide (in fizzy drinks)
3. petrol

   Synonym: benzina

4. poison gas

Related terms

Further reading

• gas in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana

Latin

Etymology

Coined by chemist Jan Baptist van Helmont (appearing in his Ortus Medicinae as an invariable noun).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /ˈɡas/, [ˈɡäs̠]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈɡas/, [ˈɡäs]

Noun

gas n (genitive gasis); third declension

1. (physics) gas (state of matter)

   Synonyms: gasum, gasium

Declension

Third-declension noun (neuter, imparisyllabic non-i-stem).

Malay

Etymology

From English gas, from Dutch gas, coined by chemist Jan Baptist van Helmont in Ortus Medicinae. Derived from Ancient Greek χάος (kháos, “chasm, void, empty space”); perhaps also inspired by geest (“breath, vapour, spirit”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ɡɛs], [ɡas]
• Rhymes: -ɛs, -as
• Hyphenation: gas

Noun

gas (Jawi spelling ݢس, plural gas-gas)

1. gas:
   1. (physics) One of the four states of matter.

      Coordinate terms: pepejal (“solid”), cecair (“liquid”), plasma (“plasma”)

   2. (uncountable, physical chemistry) Matter in an intermediate state between liquid and plasma that can be contained only if it is fully surrounded by a solid (or in a bubble of liquid, or held together by gravitational pull); it can condense into a liquid, or can (rarely) become a solid directly by deposition.
   3. The gas that is released by coal factories.
   4. The vapour that is released by petrol or gasoline.

Compounds

Further reading

• “gas” in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu | Malay Literary Reference Centre, Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017.

Naga Pidgin

Alternative forms

• gach

Etymology

Inherited from Assamese গছ (gos).

Noun

gas

1. tree

Norman

Etymology

From Old French gars, nominative singular form of garçon.

Noun

gas m (plural gas)

1. (Jersey) chap

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From French gaze.

Noun

gas m (definite singular gasen, indefinite plural gaser, definite plural gasene)

1. gauze

See also

• gass
• gås

References

• “gas” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From French gaze.

Noun

gas m (definite singular gasen, indefinite plural gasar, definite plural gasane)

1. gauze

See also

• gass
• gås

References

• “gas” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Old Saxon

Alternative forms

• gōs

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *gans, from Proto-Germanic *gans, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰh₂éns.

Noun

gās f

1. a goose

Declension

Descendants

• Low German: Goos

Old Swedish

Alternative forms

• ᚵᛆᛋ

Etymology

From Old Norse gás, from Proto-Germanic *gans.

Noun

gās f

1. goose

Declension

Descendants

• Swedish: gås

Rohingya

Etymology

From Sanskrit.

Noun

gas

1. tree

Romagnol

Etymology

From Dutch gas (“gas”), invented by Jan Baptiste van Helmont, from Latin chaos (“chaos”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡas/

Noun

gas m (plural ghës)

1. gas

Serbo-Croatian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡâːs/

Noun

gȃs m (Cyrillic spelling га̑с)

1. (chiefly Bosnia, Serbia or colloquial) gas (state of matter)

   Synonym: (Croatian) plȋn

2. gas (as fuel for combustion engines)
3. (figuratively) acceleration
   • dȁti gȃs - “give gas”: accelerate
4. gas pedal, accelerator

Declension

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowed from Dutch gas, coined by Belgian chemist Jan Baptist van Helmont. Perhaps inspired by Middle Dutch gheest (Modern Dutch geest (“breath, vapour, spirit”), or from Ancient Greek χάος (kháos, “chasm, void”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɡas/ [ˈɡas]
• Rhymes: -as
• Syllabification: gas

Noun

gas m (plural gases)

1. gas (matter between liquid and plasma)
2. gas (an element or compound in such a state)
3. gas (flammable gas used for combustion)
4. (in the plural) gas (waste gases trapped in one's belly)

Derived terms

Related terms

Further reading

• “gas”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10

Anagrams

• ags, Ags

Swedish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡɑːs/

Etymology 1

From Dutch gas.

Noun

gas c

1. gas; a state of matter
2. gas; a compound or element in such a state
3. gas; gaseous fuels
4. (plural only: gaser) gas; waste gas
5. gas pedal, acceleration (compare gaspedal (“gas pedal”) and gasa (“accelerate, hit the gas”))

Declension

Derived terms

Etymology 2

From French gaze. Attested since 1670.

Noun

gas c

1. (chiefly in compounds) gauze (thin fabric with a loose, open weave)
   1. (medicine) gauze

Declension

Derived terms

• gasbinda

References

• gas in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• gas in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• gas in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)

Anagrams

• ags, asg

Tagalog

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ˈɡas/ [ˈɡas]
• Rhymes: -as
• Syllabification: gas

Etymology 1

Either from English gas, itself a clipping of gasoline, or a clipping of gasolina.

Alternative forms

• gaas

Noun

gas (Baybayin spelling ᜄᜐ᜔)

1. gasoline

   Synonym: gasolina

2. kerosene; petroleum; gas

   Synonyms: kerosin, petrolyo

Derived terms

Etymology 2

Either from Spanish gas or English gas, ultimately from Dutch gas.

Noun

gas (Baybayin spelling ᜄᜐ᜔)

1. gaseous substance; vapor; fume

   Synonyms: singaw, asngaw

Welsh

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡaːs/

Verb

gas

1. Soft mutation of cas.

Mutation

West Frisian

Etymology

Borrowed from Dutch gas.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡɔs/

Noun

gas n (plural gassen)

1. gas

Further reading

• “gas”, in Wurdboek fan de Fryske taal (in Dutch), 2011