refuel

verb re·fu·el \ (ˌ)rē-ˈfyü(-ə)l \

Definition of refuel

transitive verb

:to provide with additional fuel

intransitive verb

:to take on additional fuel

See refuel defined for English-language learners

See refuel defined for kids

Examples of refuel in a Sentence

The crew refueled the airplane.
The airplane landed to refuel.

Recent Examples of refuel from the Web

Across Houston last week, motorists refueled before Hurricane Harvey struck, leaving many gas stations with empty tanks.

— Alaska Dispatch News, "Harvey’s effects on fuel network hit U.S. motorists as gas prices rise," 30 Aug. 2017
The other aircraft refueled and went on to North Carolina, with its canines continuing on to various shelters including Animal Haven in New York City.

— ricardo arduengo, chicagotribune.com, "More than 200 doomed Puerto Rico dogs saved by airlift to U.S.," 24 Aug. 2017
Fuel cell cars, emission-free like pure electric cars, can be refueled in two to three minutes unlike electric vehicles that can take several hours to fully recharge.

— youkyung lee, Detroit Free Press, "Hyundai unveils new fuel cell SUV with longer travel range," 17 Aug. 2017
To fight the heat, firefighters are rotated in and out and given short breaks to refuel.

— sandra gomez-aceves, courant.com, "Firefighters Battle Blaze On Freeman Street," 19 July 2017
Long, who turns 90 next month, has argued that Earhart and Noonan were supposed to refuel at Howland Island before embarking on the last leg of their journey to Honolulu, but could not locate it.

— aaron goldstein, National Review, "Why Can’t People Accept That Amelia Earhart Is Probably at the Bottom of the Pacific Ocean?," 19 July 2017
The KC-130 is used to refuel aircraft in flight and transport cargo and troops.

— CBS News, "KC-130 crash: Jet developed problems high in the air, general says," 12 July 2017
At the same time, bases where cruisers and destroyers typically go to rearm and refuel would become obvious targets in wartime and may be shut down by enemy action.

— kyle mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "The Navy Needs a Way to Reload Missile Silos at Sea," 6 July 2017
For those birds, refueling might take up to an extra week at each stopover.

— giorgia guglielmi, Science | AAAS, "Even tiny amounts of oil could doom seabirds," 5 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'refuel.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of refuel

1811

REFUEL Defined for English Language Learners

refuel

verb

Definition of refuel for English Language Learners

: to add fuel to (an airplane, a truck, etc.)

REFUEL Defined for Kids

refuel

verb re·fu·el \ ˌrē-ˈfyü-əl \

Definition of refuel for Students

refueled; refueling

:to provide with or take on more fuel

Learn More about refuel

See words that rhyme with refuel Spanish Central: Translation of refuel Nglish: Translation of refuel for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of refuel for Arabic speakers

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refuel

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