plural gases also gasses
1
: a fluid (such as air) that has neither independent shape nor volume but tends to expand indefinitely
2
a
: a combustible gas or gaseous mixture for fuel or lighting
especially
: natural gas
b
: a gaseous product of digestion
also
: discomfort from this
c
: a gas or gaseous mixture used to produce anesthesia
d
: a substance that can be used to produce a poisonous, suffocating, or physically irritating atmosphere
3
: empty talk : bombast
His talk about quitting his job was all gas.
4
: gasoline
also
: the accelerator pedal of an automotive vehicle
5
: driving force : energy
I was young, and full of gas—
H. L. Mencken
H. L. Menckenran out of gas in the seventh inning
6
slang
: something that gives pleasure : delight
the party was a gas
7
baseball, informal
: fast and powerfully thrown pitches : smoke sense 8
That's Nate on the mound in the glossy photo in his dad's office, throwing gas in some Little League game.—Austin Murphy
Austin Murphy
gassed; gassing
1
: to talk idly or garrulously
2
: to give off gas (see gas entry 1 sense 1)
3
: to fill the tank (as of an automobile) with gasoline
—usually used with up
1
: to supply with gas or especially gasoline
gas up the car
2
a
: to treat chemically with gas
b
: to poison or otherwise affect adversely with gas
3
slang
: to please greatly
gender-affirming surgery; gender affirmation surgery
Gender-affirming surgery (GAS), which refers to any surgical procedure that modifies an individual's body in accordance with their gender identity and expression, is sought after by some transgender and gender nonbinary individuals.—Alexandra Terris-Feldman et al.
Alexandra Terris-Feldman et al.Currently, there are many treatment options for gender dysphoria, including hormone treatment, … psychotherapy, and GAS.—Hadal El-Hadi et al.
Hadal El-Hadi et al.
Synonyms
Examples of gas in a Sentence
Noun
Carbon monoxide is a poisonous gas.
We heat our house with gas.
Do you have a gas stove or an electric one?
The car gets good gas mileage.
The car almost ran out of gas.
He was driving with one foot on the gas and one foot on the brake.
Verb
soldiers gassed on the battlefield
We stopped to gas the car.
See More
Recent Examples on the WebElias Ferrer Breda, Forbes, 30 Nov. 2023
Knew there was no electricity, no gas, no fuel, no proper good water, no medical assistance.
—Louisa Loveluck, Washington Post, 30 Nov. 2023
The company uses innovations from the oil and gas industry, such as horizontal drilling and distributed fiber-optic sensing, to create underground reservoirs.
—IEEE Spectrum, 29 Nov. 2023
Polar scientists can then tease apart the potential warming from natural fluctuations in Earth’s climate versus the contribution of our civilization’s gas emissions.
—Matt Simon, WIRED, 29 Nov. 2023
Germany turned to Norwegian gas after rejecting Russian supplies.
—Peter Vanham, Fortune Europe, 28 Nov. 2023
The case for oil and gas Russia’s invasion of Ukraine disrupted the world’s energy supplies, and many economists fear that the escalating Israel-Hamas conflict and rising geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and China could soon do the same.
—Will Daniel, Fortune, 28 Nov. 2023
Drake had even more creative gas in the tank to pump out one more project before the end of 2023 with For All the Dogs Scary Hours Edition, the third installment of his Scary Hours extended play series.
—Starr Bowenbank, Billboard, 17 Nov. 2023
Experts blast Biden's deal with China to shut down oil and gas ...Read more
Campaign Trail
FOX NEWS POLL: Americans rate the parties on issues for 2024 ...
—Fox News Staff, Fox News, 17 Nov. 2023
Roger Cohen, New York Times, 31 Oct. 2023
And like McClanahan, two-time Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom – who gassed his fastball up to 98.7 mph in this, the first year of a $185 million deal with Texas – underwent his second elbow reconstruction procedure in June.
—Gabe Lacques, USA TODAY, 31 Aug. 2023
Actress Gail Bean sat down with ESSENCE, initially using a metaphor about gassing up your car to explain why SAG-AFTRA and WGA are on strike.
—Rayna Reid Rayford, Essence, 9 Aug. 2023
Customers can head over to any of the over 25 participating CleanFreak Car Wash locations in Arizona after gassing up their ride and get their first month free when subscribing to any car wash packages.
—The Arizona Republic, 24 May 2023
Allen hits the corner for 22 yards and Wisconsin answers quickly against a Buffalo team that is probably a bit gassed at this point.
—Jr Radcliffe, Journal Sentinel, 2 Sep. 2023
Moore had been gassed at Cambrai, one of the few survivors of his unit.
—Hazlitt, 30 Aug. 2023
But Barbie getting gassed up to go see the gynecologist was pretty funny and relatable lol.
—Fidel Martinez, Los Angeles Times, 27 July 2023
Dual Hydrostatic Zero Turn Riding Mower is a powerful machine that comes fully assembled and gassed up ready to go.
—Kat De Naoum, Better Homes & Gardens, 16 June 2023
See More
Noun
Various Chinese oil and gas firms are heavily invested in the two South American countries, while Beijing has different cooperation agreements with both Caracas and Georgetown.
—Elias Ferrer Breda, Forbes, 30 Nov. 2023
Knew there was no electricity, no gas, no fuel, no proper good water, no medical assistance.
—Louisa Loveluck, Washington Post, 30 Nov. 2023
The company uses innovations from the oil and gas industry, such as horizontal drilling and distributed fiber-optic sensing, to create underground reservoirs.
—IEEE Spectrum, 29 Nov. 2023
Polar scientists can then tease apart the potential warming from natural fluctuations in Earth’s climate versus the contribution of our civilization’s gas emissions.
—Matt Simon, WIRED, 29 Nov. 2023
Germany turned to Norwegian gas after rejecting Russian supplies.
—Peter Vanham, Fortune Europe, 28 Nov. 2023
The case for oil and gas Russia’s invasion of Ukraine disrupted the world’s energy supplies, and many economists fear that the escalating Israel-Hamas conflict and rising geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and China could soon do the same.
—Will Daniel, Fortune, 28 Nov. 2023
Drake had even more creative gas in the tank to pump out one more project before the end of 2023 with For All the Dogs Scary Hours Edition, the third installment of his Scary Hours extended play series.
—Starr Bowenbank, Billboard, 17 Nov. 2023
Experts blast Biden's deal with China to shut down oil and gas ...Read more
Campaign Trail
FOX NEWS POLL: Americans rate the parties on issues for 2024 ...
—Fox News Staff, Fox News, 17 Nov. 2023
Verb
This feels, to many European Jews, like the same blindness or insouciance that allowed millions of their forbears to be sent to Nazi camps to be gassed.
—Roger Cohen, New York Times, 31 Oct. 2023
And like McClanahan, two-time Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom – who gassed his fastball up to 98.7 mph in this, the first year of a $185 million deal with Texas – underwent his second elbow reconstruction procedure in June.
—Gabe Lacques, USA TODAY, 31 Aug. 2023
Actress Gail Bean sat down with ESSENCE, initially using a metaphor about gassing up your car to explain why SAG-AFTRA and WGA are on strike.
—Rayna Reid Rayford, Essence, 9 Aug. 2023
Customers can head over to any of the over 25 participating CleanFreak Car Wash locations in Arizona after gassing up their ride and get their first month free when subscribing to any car wash packages.
—The Arizona Republic, 24 May 2023
Allen hits the corner for 22 yards and Wisconsin answers quickly against a Buffalo team that is probably a bit gassed at this point.
—Jr Radcliffe, Journal Sentinel, 2 Sep. 2023
Moore had been gassed at Cambrai, one of the few survivors of his unit.
—Hazlitt, 30 Aug. 2023
But Barbie getting gassed up to go see the gynecologist was pretty funny and relatable lol.
—Fidel Martinez, Los Angeles Times, 27 July 2023
Dual Hydrostatic Zero Turn Riding Mower is a powerful machine that comes fully assembled and gassed up ready to go.
—Kat De Naoum, Better Homes & Gardens, 16 June 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gas.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
Noun
1779, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Verb
1849, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1
Phrases Containing gas
Dictionary Entries Near gas
Cite this Entry
“Gas.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gas. Accessed 5 Dec. 2023.
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Kids Definition
gas
1 of 2 noun
plural gases also gasses
1
: a fluid (as hydrogen or air) that has no fixed shape and tends to expand without limit
2
a
: a gas or mixture of gases used as a fuel or as an anesthetic
b
: a gaseous product of digestion
c
: a fluid substance (as tear gas) that can be used to produce a poisonous or suffocating atmosphere
3
: unimportant talk : bombast
4
: gasoline
5
slang
: something appealing or enjoyable
the party was a gas
gas
2 of 2 verb
gassed; gassing
1
: to supply with gas
gas up the car
2
a
: to treat with gas
b
: to poison with gas
3
: to talk idly
Medical Definition
gas
1 of 3 noun
plural gases also gasses
1
: a fluid (as air) that has neither independent shape nor volume but tends to expand indefinitely
2
: a gaseous product of digestion
also
: discomfort from this
3
: a gas or gaseous mixture used to produce anesthesia
4
: a substance that can be used to produce a poisonous, asphyxiating, or irritant atmosphere
gas
2 of 3 transitive verb
gassed; gassing
1
: to treat chemically with gas
2
: to poison or otherwise affect adversely with gas
GAS
3 of 3 abbreviation2
gender-affirming surgery; gender affirmation surgery
More from Merriam-Webster on gas
Nglish: Translation of gas for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of gas for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about gas
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