ethanol

noun

eth·​a·​nol ˈe-thə-ˌnȯl  -ˌnōl 

 British also  ˈē-

: a colorless volatile flammable liquid C₂H₅OH that is the intoxicating agent in liquors and is also used as a solvent and in fuel

called also ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol

Examples of ethanol in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The fact sheet estimates that U.S. ethanol exports to the U.K. could reach $700 million a year, with another $250 million coming from beef exports. —Haisten Willis, The Washington Examiner, 8 May 2025

In exchange, the U.K. will ease trade barriers targeting a set of products, including ethanol, beef and machinery, among other products, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said. —Max Zahn, ABC News, 8 May 2025

That ethanol can become sustainable aviation fuel, for example. —Joan Michelson, Forbes.com, 30 Apr. 2025

Yet environmentalists warn that ethanol's growing footprint poses risks. —Mohammed Soliman, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1892, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for ethanol

• aerosol
• alcohol
• arbitral
• basketball
• butanol
• cannonball
• carbinol
• catarrhal
• cortisol
• fireball
• gasohol
• guaiacol

Kids Definition

ethanol

noun

eth·​a·​nol ˈeth-ə-ˌnȯl 

-ˌnōl

: a colorless flammable easily evaporated liquid that is used to dissolve things and that is the substance in fermented and distilled liquors that can make one drunk

called also ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol

Medical Definition

ethanol

noun

eth·​a·​nol ˈeth-ə-ˌnȯl  -ˌnōl 

: a colorless volatile flammable liquid C₂H₅OH that is the intoxicating agent in liquors and is also used as a solvent

called also ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol

see alcohol sense 1