: a colorless odorless gaseous alkane C2H6 found in natural gas and used as a fuel
Examples of ethane in a Sentence
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Not water, though—NASA’s Cassini orbiter discovered lakes of liquid methane and ethane, some bigger than Lake Superior, near Titan’s poles.
—
Phil Plait, Scientific American, 10 Apr. 2026
Plastics used in bottled water packaging are closely tied to energy markets: ethylene, a key component of plastic resins, is derived from ethane, which comes from natural gas, Kenneth Gillingham, a professor of economics at Yale University, told Newsweek.
—Jasmine Laws, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Apr. 2026
Those plastic dunes could be used to construct surface-level habitats, and the ethane and methane lakes could power them.
—Jeff Spry, Space.com, 8 Mar. 2026
Lodaya noted his previous reservations for Westlake, as well as the broad ethylene sector, included a shrinking ethane advantage and unfavorable polyethylene supply-demand dynamics.
—Lisa Kailai Han, CNBC, 5 Mar. 2026
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Phil Plait, Scientific American, 10 Apr. 2026
Plastics used in bottled water packaging are closely tied to energy markets: ethylene, a key component of plastic resins, is derived from ethane, which comes from natural gas, Kenneth Gillingham, a professor of economics at Yale University, told Newsweek.
—Jasmine Laws, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Apr. 2026
Those plastic dunes could be used to construct surface-level habitats, and the ethane and methane lakes could power them.
—Jeff Spry, Space.com, 8 Mar. 2026
Lodaya noted his previous reservations for Westlake, as well as the broad ethylene sector, included a shrinking ethane advantage and unfavorable polyethylene supply-demand dynamics.
—Lisa Kailai Han, CNBC, 5 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for ethane
Cite this Entry
“Ethane.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ethane. Accessed 22 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
ethane
noun
eth·ane
ˈeth-ˌān 
: a colorless odorless gas that consists of carbon and hydrogen, is found in natural gas, and is used especially as a fuel
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