bitumen
UK /ˈbɪt.jʊ.mɪn/ · US /bɪˈtumən/ noun, verb
Forms bitumina bitumens bitumening bitumened
- noun A sticky, black, highly viscous liquid or semi-solid form of petroleum, burning with a bright flame. It occurs as an abundant natural product in many places, as on the shores of the Dead and Caspian Seas. It is used in cements, in the construction of pavements, etc.; Mineral pitch.
- noun (by extension) Any one of the natural hydrocarbons, including the hard, solid, brittle varieties called asphalt, the semisolid maltha and mineral tars, the oily petrolea, and even the light, volatile naphthas.
- noun (Australia, colloquial) Roads sealed with bitumen, as opposed to dirt roads.
- noun (Canada) Canadian deposits of extremely heavy crude oil.
- verb To cover or fill with bitumen.
Synonyms
Etymology
From Middle English bithumen, bitumen, from Latin bitūmen. Doublet of bitume.
Webster’s 1913
- noun Mineral pitch; a black, tarry substance, burning with a bright flame; Jew's pitch. It occurs as an abundant natural product in many places, as on the shores of the Dead and Caspian Seas. It is used in cements, in the construction of pavements, etc. See Asphalt.
- noun By extension, any one of the natural hydrocarbons, including the hard, solid, brittle varieties called asphalt, the semisolid maltha and mineral tars, the oily petroleums, and even the light, volatile naphthas.
Etymology [L. bitumen: cf. F. bitume. Cf. Béton.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “bitumen”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details