carbon

noun

car·​bon ˈkär-bən 

plural carbons

1

a

: a nonmetallic chemical element with atomic number 6 that readily forms compounds with many other elements and is a constituent of organic compounds in all known living tissues

—often used before another noun

carbon atoms

carbon life forms

carbon fibers

see Chemical Elements Table

b

: carbon dioxide

Forests, plants and natural lands can help absorb and store excess carbon from the atmosphere.

—Alex Baumhardt

—often used before another noun

carbon emissions

Oil companies … are investing in carbon capture projects as public and investor pressures mount over climate change.

—Paul Takahashi

2

: a carbon rod used in an arc lamp

3

a

: a sheet of carbon paper

b

: carbon copy

Synonyms of carbon

• twin
• image
• replica
• clone
• picture
• duplicate
• portrait
• double

Examples of carbon in a Sentence

a carbon of the document

this new digital camera is a carbon of a well-known model costing almost twice as much

Recent Examples on the Web

If the knife person in your life doesn’t have a carbon-steel blade already, the Japanese knifemaker Misono’s Swedish Carbon Gyuto ($125 for the twenty-one-centimetre blade) is a perfect start. —Helen Rosner, New Yorker, 16 Nov. 2025

The app is used by national parks, firefighting units, carbon credit projects and forestry companies, many of which operate in rural, impoverished or underserved communities. —Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Nov. 2025

Featuring a trilobal cross-sectioning, the carbon-neutral fiber reportedly outperformed conventional viscose during Syngina values, a standardized laboratory test method used to measure the absorbency of tampons. —Alexandra Harrell, Sourcing Journal, 14 Nov. 2025

Each year a slew of reports are published to coincide with COP, stressing the huge impact of extreme weather on African countries while pointing out that the continent only contributes about 4% of global carbon emissions. —Alexis Akwagyiram, semafor.com, 14 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

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

First Known Use

1788, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing carbon

• activated carbon
• blind carbon copy
• carbon black
• carbon capture
• carbon capture and storage
• carbon copy
• carbon cycle
• carbon dating
• carbon dioxide
• carbon disulfide
• carbon fiber
• carbon footprint
• carbon monoxide
• carbon paper
• carbon sequestration
• carbon sink
• carbon steel
• carbon tetrachloride

Rhymes for carbon

• fluorocarbon
• hydrocarbon

Kids Definition

carbon

noun

car·​bon ˈkär-bən 

1

: a nonmetallic element found more or less pure in nature (as in diamond and graphite) or as a part of coal and petroleum and of the bodies of living things or obtained artificially see element

2

a

: a sheet of carbon paper

b

: carbon copy sense 1

Medical Definition

carbon

noun

car·​bon ˈkär-bən 

: a nonmetallic chemical element with atomic number 6 that readily forms compounds with many other elements and is a constituent of organic compounds in all known living tissues

—symbol C see Chemical Elements Table