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Hydraulic fracturing is a technique in which a liquid is injected under high pressure into a well in order to create tiny fissures in the rock deep beneath the earth which then allow gas and oil to flow into the well. The term "hydraulic fracturing" is first known to have appeared in print in a 1948 issue of Oil & Gas Journal. A 1953 issue of the same journal also contains the earliest known print use of "fracking." The word fracking (sometimes spelled fraccing or fracing, particularly by those in the gas and oil industries) was created by shortening "fracturing." The addition of the "k" brings the word into conformity with the inflected forms of similar English words ending in a vowel plus "c," such as shellacking, panicking, and frolicking.
Examples of fracking in a Sentence
Aysha Bagchi, USA TODAY, 21 Oct. 2024
Gone was the candidate who wanted to abolish private health insurance, decriminalize border crossings, ban fracking, phase out the internal-combustion engine, and close private prisons.
—Matthew Continetti, National Review, 19 Oct. 2024
Trump has chided Harris for changing her positions on issues such as fracking and immigration as she's moved off several of her liberal stances — and as she's been reluctant to say whether she's changed her views on other issues.
—Erin Doherty, Axios, 30 Sep. 2024
Supporting a ban on fracking is widely perceived as a dangerous position given the significant role of oil in the state’s economy.
—Justin Worland, TIME, 11 Sep. 2024
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Dictionary Entries Near fracking
Cite this Entry
“Fracking.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fracking. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.
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