gas
Americannoun
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gases,
plural
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gasses
plural
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Physics. a substance possessing perfect molecular mobility and the property of indefinite expansion, as opposed to a solid or liquid.
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any such fluid or mixture of fluids.
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any such fluid used as an anesthetic, as nitrous oxide.
Did the dentist give you gas for your extraction?
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any such combustible fluid used as fuel.
Light the gas in the oven.
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Automotive.
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Also called gas pedal. the foot-operated accelerator of an automotive vehicle.
Take your foot off the gas.
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Coal Mining. an explosive mixture of firedamp with air.
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an aeriform fluid or a mistlike assemblage of fine particles suspended in air, used in warfare to asphyxiate, poison, or stupefy an enemy.
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Slang.
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empty talk.
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a person or thing that is very entertaining, pleasing, or successful.
The party was an absolute gas, and we loved it.
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a person or thing that affects one strongly.
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verb (used with object)
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gasses,
present (3rd person singular)
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gassed,
past participle, past
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gassing
present participle
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to supply with gas.
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to overcome, poison, or asphyxiate with gas or fumes.
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to singe (yarns or fabrics) with a gas flame to remove superfluous fibers.
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to treat or impregnate with gas.
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Slang.
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to talk nonsense or falsehood to.
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to amuse or affect strongly.
Her weird clothes really gas me.
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verb (used without object)
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gasses,
present (3rd person singular)
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gassed,
past participle, past
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gassing
present participle
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to give off gas, as a storage battery being charged.
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Slang.
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to indulge in idle, empty talk.
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to become drunk (often followed byup ).
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verb phrase
idioms
noun
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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
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any substance that is gaseous at room temperature and atmospheric pressure
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any gaseous substance that is above its critical temperature and therefore not liquefiable by pressure alone Compare vapour
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a fossil fuel in the form of a gas, used as a source of domestic and industrial heat See also coal gas natural gas
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( as modifier )
a gas cooker
gas fire
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a gaseous anaesthetic, such as nitrous oxide
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mining firedamp or the explosive mixture of firedamp and air
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the usual US, Canadian, and New Zealand word for petrol See also gasoline
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informal
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to increase the speed of a motor vehicle; accelerate
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to hurry
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a toxic or suffocating substance in suspension in air used against an enemy
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informal idle talk or boasting
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slang a delightful or successful person or thing
his latest record is a gas
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an informal name for flatus
verb
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(tr) to provide or fill with gas
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(tr) to subject to gas fumes, esp so as to asphyxiate or render unconscious
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(intr) to give off gas, as in the charging of a battery
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(tr) (in textiles) to singe (fabric) with a flame from a gas burner to remove unwanted fibres
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informal to talk in an idle or boastful way (to a person)
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slang (tr) to thrill or delight
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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gassimple
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gassessimple
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have gassedperfect
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has gassedperfect
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am gassingprogressive
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are gassingprogressive
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is gassingprogressive
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have been gassingperfect progressive
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has been gassingperfect progressive
Past
-
gassedsimple
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had gassedperfect
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was gassingprogressive
-
were gassingprogressive
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had been gassingperfect progressive
Future
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.
Vocabulary lists containing gas
Space Science (Astronomy) - Introductory
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Chemistry - Introductory
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Earth and the Solar System - Middle 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.
See Examples For:
"There were around 150 of us, mostly secondary school and university students. Then the tear gas came almost immediately. You could barely see anything in the street," said one protester in France's third-largest city.
From BBC ● Oct. 24, 2026
The price of gas varies widely across the country.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 24, 2026
French police fired tear gas to prevent protesters in Lyon, Lille, Montpellier, Nantes and Toulouse from reaching city centres, AFP journalists saw.
From Barron's ● Oct. 24, 2026
Approval of this project, argues McCulloch, could pave the way for four more Jackdaw-sized gas developments in the waters west of Shetland – Tornado, Tornado East, Tobermory and Suilven.
From BBC ● Oct. 24, 2026
A nearby flower sprays a puff of gas into my face.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
Another concern is the toxic greenhouse gases that are being unleashed into the air.
From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2026
"Since the incident we have learnt lessons, and as part of this, we have improved our oversight of the monitoring of medical gases across the maternity unit at Basildon Hospital."
From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026
Yet bogs are fragile, and as they are drained, burned or dug up to gather fuel or create more land for agriculture, they release millennia of stored greenhouse gases into the air.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
But fabrication and assembly plant workers can face exposure to solvents, acids, toxic metals and chemical gases, according to the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026
Gagarin had to hit the layer of gases surrounding Earth at just the right angle.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
The industrial gasses company said Monday that it wants to grow net earnings per share by a compound annual growth rate of 10% over the period, from the 6.1 euros it reported for 2025.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026
The gas detected in the atmosphere is helium, which would not be able to support life, but other gasses may also be present.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
Unlike visible light, radio waves from hot gasses are not blocked that easily by cosmic dust.
From Space Scoop ● Mar. 27, 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
The regulator analyzes the air with spectroscopy, then separates the gasses by supercooling them.
From "The Martian" by Andy Weir
Fitness is next: He looked a little gassed against Zverev, and admitted as much.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 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
He finished with eight points in his debut, shooting three of 15 from the perimeter in a performance that left him obviously gassed throughout.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 22, 2026
I remember leaving Malloy's house, running down the block, busting into our apartment all gassed up, excited to show Jazz what I learned.
From "When I Was the Greatest" by Jason Reynolds
"From the first round, I saw his gassing out. He started fast. I knew he was going to gas out. I knew when my chance came I needed to push. That is what I did."
From BBC ● Aug. 29, 2026
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
A civilian aviation notice this week warned that refueling was being limited at Agadez since the coup, with every single gassing up requiring approval from the 409th’s commander.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 3, 2023
It's like he felt tougher whenever he started blabbing about it, gassing his own head up, turning the story into a much bigger deal than it really was.
From "When I Was the Greatest" by Jason Reynolds
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
