# diesel

Pronunciation: US say "DEE-suhl" /ˈdisəl/; UK/AUS say "DEE-zuhl" /ˈdiːzəl/

## Noun

1. A fuel made from petroleum or other oils, heavier than gasoline, that powers diesel engines, which ignite it with the heat of compressed air.
   - Simple: A fuel made from oil, heavier than gasoline, that is burned in diesel engines.
   - _Farmers keep a tank of diesel on hand for their tractors and generators._
   - _The backup generator can run for three days on a full tank of diesel._
2. Short for diesel engine. — Ellipsis of diesel engine.
   - Simple: Short for diesel engine. People often say just diesel for the engine.
   - _The mechanic rebuilt the diesel in our fishing boat over the winter._
   - _For the pump station, engineers chose a diesel over an electric motor so it could keep running during power outages._
3. A vehicle, such as a truck or locomotive, that is driven by a diesel engine.
   - Simple: A vehicle, like a truck or a train, with a diesel engine.
   - _She traded in her sedan for a diesel because she tows a horse trailer most weekends._
   - _The railroad retired its last steam locomotive and ran only diesels after that._

## Verb

4. Of a spark-ignition engine: to keep running after the current to the spark plugs is cut, because heat in the combustion chamber ignites the fuel-air mixture, as in a diesel.
   - Simple: Of an engine with spark plugs: to keep running after it is turned off, because heat lights the fuel.
   - _An overheated engine with carbon deposits in its cylinders may diesel after the ignition is turned off._
   - _Many older carbureted cars have a solenoid that cuts off fuel to keep the engine from dieseling._

## Other meanings

- (noun) One specific strain of cannabis, bred by crossing different varieties.
- (verb) To set a substance burning by means of the heat that compression produces.
- (noun) A cyclist who rides at a steady, even effort rather than in bursts of speed.
- (noun) A name for the drink otherwise called snakebite and black.

## Origin

The word comes from German Diesel, which honors the inventor Rudolf Diesel. He developed a heavy-duty engine in Germany between 1892 and 1897 and kept improving it for the rest of his life.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/diesel (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).