Main Entry: car·bon

Pronunciation: \ˈkär-bən\

Function: noun

Usage: often attributive

Etymology: French carbone, from Latin carbon-, carbo ember, charcoal

Date: 1789

1 : a nonmetallic chiefly tetravalent element found native (as in diamond and graphite) or as a constituent of coal, petroleum, and asphalt, of limestone and other carbonates, and of organic compounds or obtained artificially in varying degrees of purity especially as carbon black, lampblack, activated carbon, charcoal, and coke — see element table
2 : a carbon rod used in an arc lamp
3 a : a sheet of carbon paper b : carbon copy