ethane

noun

eth·​ane ˈe-ˌthān 

British usually

ˈē- 

: a colorless odorless gaseous alkane C₂H₆ found in natural gas and used as a fuel

Examples of ethane in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The government is considering scrapping the extra duties on items including medical equipment and industrial chemicals such as ethane. —Chloe Taylor,ganesh Rao, CNBC, 25 Apr. 2025

One assumed that the ratio of methane and ethane to water ice is similar to what was measured on Enceladus, while another looked at the ratio found on Comet 67P during the winter. —Victoria Corless, Space.com, 21 Mar. 2025

With rivers, lakes and even seas made of liquid methane and ethane, plus a hidden underground ocean of water, Saturn's moon Titan has long fascinated scientists as a place where alien life might exist. —Victoria Corless, Space.com, 15 Apr. 2025

In addition to liquid oil, the pyrolysis process generates natural gases, such as methane, ethane, butane and propane. —Alexander Kaplitz, The Conversation, 18 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

International Scientific Vocabulary, from ethyl

First Known Use

1866, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for ethane

• abstain
• airplane
• alkane
• arcane
• arraign
• attain
• backplane
• betaine
• biplane
• blockchain
• butane
• campaign

Kids Definition

ethane

noun

eth·​ane ˈeth-ˌān 

: a colorless odorless gas that consists of carbon and hydrogen, is found in natural gas, and is used especially as a fuel

Medical Definition

ethane

noun

eth·​ane

ˈeth-ˌān, British ˈē-ˌthān

: a colorless odorless gaseous alkane C₂H₆ found in natural gas and used especially as a fuel