ethanol

noun

eth·​a·​nol ˈe-thə-ˌnȯl  -ˌnōl 

 British also  ˈē-

: a colorless volatile flammable liquid C₂H₅OH that is the intoxicating agent in liquors and is also used as a solvent and in fuel

called also ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol

Examples of ethanol in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Corn and soybeans are now grown on 92 and 86 million acres of land respectively—and roughly a third of those crops go to produce ethanol. —ArsTechnica, 14 June 2025

Each increase of 10 grams of ethanol per day in alcohol consumption was associated with a 3% increase in the risk of pancreatic cancer, the study found. —Ashley J. Dimella, FOXNews.com, 11 June 2025

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said that the trade deal will maintain the universal 10% tariff but will open U.K. markets to roughly $5 billion worth of U.S. exports, including beef, ethanol, and machinery. —Shannon Carroll, Quartz, 8 May 2025

The biofuels industry and politicians in both major parties argue that ethanol helps farmers, lowers prices at the pump and reduces greenhouse gas because the fuel burns more cleanly than straight gasoline. —John Hanna, Chicago Tribune, 29 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1892, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for ethanol

• aerosol
• alcohol
• arbitral
• basketball
• butanol
• cannonball
• carbinol
• catarrhal
• cortisol
• fireball
• gasohol
• guaiacol

Kids Definition

ethanol

noun

eth·​a·​nol ˈeth-ə-ˌnȯl 

-ˌnōl

: a colorless flammable easily evaporated liquid that is used to dissolve things and that is the substance in fermented and distilled liquors that can make one drunk

called also ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol

Medical Definition

ethanol

noun

eth·​a·​nol ˈeth-ə-ˌnȯl  -ˌnōl 

: a colorless volatile flammable liquid C₂H₅OH that is the intoxicating agent in liquors and is also used as a solvent

called also ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol

see alcohol sense 1