hydrocarbon

noun

hy·​dro·​car·​bon ˈhī-drō-ˌkär-bən How to pronounce hydrocarbon (audio)
: an organic compound (such as acetylene or butane) containing only carbon and hydrogen and often occurring in petroleum, natural gas, coal, and bitumens

Examples of hydrocarbon in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Rodríguez has said the government has signed about 50 investment agreements covering more than 76 hydrocarbon-producing areas. — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 2 Sep. 2026 Waste plastic could provide another source of hydrocarbons for fuel production, particularly as governments and industry look for ways to deal with both plastic waste and aviation emissions. — Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 30 Aug. 2026 This is most obviously true for more oil-dependent states, such as Iraq, which will struggle to pay its substantial public wage bill without hydrocarbon earnings. — Dina Esfandiary, Foreign Affairs, 27 Aug. 2026 That’s hitting Gulf economies, which rely on the waterways to export hydrocarbons and import everything from cars and machinery to food and agricultural products. — Matthew Martin, semafor.com, 24 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for hydrocarbon

Word History

First Known Use

1826, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of hydrocarbon was in 1826

Phrases Containing hydrocarbon

Rhymes for hydrocarbon

See All Rhymes for hydrocarbon

Browse Nearby Words

hydrocalumite
hydrocarbon
hydrocarbonate
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Hydrocarbon.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hydrocarbon. Accessed 3 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

hydrocarbon

noun
hy·​dro·​car·​bon ˌhī-drə-ˈkär-bən How to pronounce hydrocarbon (audio)
: a compound containing only carbon and hydrogen

Medical Definition

hydrocarbon

noun
hy·​dro·​car·​bon -ˈkär-bən How to pronounce hydrocarbon (audio)
: an organic compound (as acetylene, benzene, or butane) containing only carbon and hydrogen and often occurring in petroleum, natural gas, coal, and bitumens

More from Merriam-Webster on hydrocarbon

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about hydrocarbon

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
skateboard-dog-hat
Wordmaxxing Slang Quiz Give your vocabulary a glow up by getting sendy w...
See All