coal

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Related to coal: charcoal, petroleum

coal

a combustible mineral used as fuel: They used coal for heating their homes.

Not to be confused with:

cole – cabbage or rape plant: cole slaw

kohl – a preparation used as eye makeup: She accented her eyes with kohl.

coal

(kōl)

a. A natural dark brown to black graphitelike material used as a fuel, formed from fossilized plants and consisting of amorphous carbon with various organic and some inorganic compounds.

b. A piece of this substance.

2. A glowing or charred piece of solid fuel.

3. Charcoal.

v. coaled, coal·ing, coals

v.tr.

1. To burn (a combustible solid) to a charcoal residue.

2. To provide with coal.

v.intr.

To take on coal.

[Middle English col, from Old English.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

coal

(kəʊl)

1. (Minerals)

a. a combustible compact black or dark-brown carbonaceous rock formed from compaction of layers of partially decomposed vegetation: a fuel and a source of coke, coal gas, and coal tar. See also anthracite, bituminous coal, lignite, peat¹

b. (as modifier): coal cellar; coal merchant; coal mine; coal dust.

2. one or more lumps of coal

3. (Art Terms) short for charcoal

4. coals to Newcastle something supplied where it is already plentiful

5. haul someone over the coals to reprimand someone

to take in, provide with, or turn into coal

[Old English col; related to Old Norse kol, Old High German kolo, Old Irish gūal]

ˈcoaly adj

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

coal

(koʊl)

n.

1. a black or dark brown mineral substance consisting of carbonized vegetable matter, used as a fuel.

2. a piece of glowing, charred, or burned wood or other combustible substance.

3. charcoal (def. 1).

v.t.

4. to burn to coal or charcoal.

5. to provide with coal.

v.i.

6. to take in coal for fuel.

Idioms:

rake or haul over the coals, to reprimand severely.

[before 900; Middle English cole, Old English col, c. Old Frisian, Middle Low German kole, Old High German kol(o), Old Norse kol]

coal

(kōl)

A dark-brown to black, natural solid substance formed from fossilized plants under conditions of great pressure, high humidity, and lack of air. Coal consists mainly of carbon and is widely used as a fuel and raw material. See more at anthracite, bituminous coal, lignite.

The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

coal

Past participle: coaled
Gerund: coaling

Imperative
coal
coal

Present
I coal
you coal
he/she/it coals
we coal
you coal
they coal

Preterite
I coaled
you coaled
he/she/it coaled
we coaled
you coaled
they coaled

Present Continuous
I am coaling
you are coaling
he/she/it is coaling
we are coaling
you are coaling
they are coaling

Present Perfect
I have coaled
you have coaled
he/she/it has coaled
we have coaled
you have coaled
they have coaled

Past Continuous
I was coaling
you were coaling
he/she/it was coaling
we were coaling
you were coaling
they were coaling

Past Perfect
I had coaled
you had coaled
he/she/it had coaled
we had coaled
you had coaled
they had coaled

Future
I will coal
you will coal
he/she/it will coal
we will coal
you will coal
they will coal

Future Perfect
I will have coaled
you will have coaled
he/she/it will have coaled
we will have coaled
you will have coaled
they will have coaled

Future Continuous
I will be coaling
you will be coaling
he/she/it will be coaling
we will be coaling
you will be coaling
they will be coaling

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been coaling
you have been coaling
he/she/it has been coaling
we have been coaling
you have been coaling
they have been coaling

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been coaling
you will have been coaling
he/she/it will have been coaling
we will have been coaling
you will have been coaling
they will have been coaling

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been coaling
you had been coaling
he/she/it had been coaling
we had been coaling
you had been coaling
they had been coaling

Conditional
I would coal
you would coal
he/she/it would coal
we would coal
you would coal
they would coal

Past Conditional
I would have coaled
you would have coaled
he/she/it would have coaled
we would have coaled
you would have coaled
they would have coaled

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

coal

A rock that is mostly carbon and readily burns. It consists of layered plant remains compacted by pressure over millions of years.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Switch to new thesaurus

Noun	1.	coal - fossil fuel consisting of carbonized vegetable matter deposited in the Carboniferous period atomic number 6, carbon, C - an abundant nonmetallic tetravalent element occurring in three allotropic forms: amorphous carbon and graphite and diamond; occurs in all organic compounds fossil fuel - fuel consisting of the remains of organisms preserved in rocks in the earth's crust with high carbon and hydrogen content anthracite, anthracite coal, hard coal - a hard natural coal that burns slowly and gives intense heat bituminous coal, soft coal - rich in tarry hydrocarbons; burns readily with a smoky yellow flame brown coal, lignite, wood coal - intermediate between peat and bituminous coal steam coal - coal suitable for use under steam boilers vegetable matter - matter produced by plants or growing in the manner of a plant
	2.	coal - a hot fragment of wood or coal that is left from a fire and is glowing or smoldering ember fragment - a piece broken off or cut off of something else; "a fragment of rock"
Verb	1.	coal - burn to charcoal; "Without a drenching rain, the forest fire will char everything" char combust, burn - cause to burn or combust; "The sun burned off the fog"; "We combust coal and other fossil fuels"
	2.	coal - supply with coal furnish, provide, supply, render - give something useful or necessary to; "We provided the room with an electrical heater"
	3.	coal - take in coal; "The big ship coaled" gather in, take in - fold up; "take in the sails"

Translations

فَحْم

uhlí

kul

terkarbo

hiili

ugljen

szén

kol

carbone carbonella tizzone

石炭

석탄

akmens anglių baseinasakmens anglysanglių kasykladuoti pylos

akmeņogles

uhlie

premog

kol

ถ่านหิน

kömürmaden/taş kömürü

than

煤

coal

[kəʊl]

A. N → carbón m; (soft) → hulla f
to carry coals to Newcastle → llevar leña al monte or agua al mar
to haul sb over the coals → echarle una bronca a algn
to heap coals of fire on sb's head → avergonzar a algn devolviéndole bien por mal

B. VI (Naut) → tomar carbón

C. CPD coal bunker N → carbonera f
coal cellar N → carbonera f
coal dust N → polvillo m de carbón, carbonilla f
coal fire N → chimenea f de carbón
coal gas N → gas m de hulla
coal hod N → cubo m de carbón
coal industry N → industria f del carbón
coal measures NPL → depósitos mpl de carbón
coal merchant N → carbonero m
coal mine N → mina f de carbón
coal miner N → minero/a m/f del carbón
coal mining N → minería f del carbón
coal oil N (US) → parafina f
coal pit N → mina f de carbón, pozo m de carbón
coal scuttle N → cubo m para carbón
coal shed N → carbonera f
coal strike N → huelga f de mineros
coal tar N → alquitrán m mineral
coal tit N → carbonero m garrapinos
coal yard N → patio m del carbón

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

coal

[ˈkəʊl] n → charbon m
to drag sb over the coals, to haul sb over the coals (= reprimand) → passer un savon à qn
to take coals to Newcastle → porter de l'eau à la rivièrecoal-burning [ˈkəʊlbɜːnɪŋ] adj
coal-burning power stations → centrales fpl au charbon

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

coal

n → Kohle f; we still burn coal → wir heizen noch mit Kohle; as black as coal → kohlrabenschwarz; to carry or take coals to Newcastle (Brit Prov) → Eulen nach Athen tragen (Prov); to haul (Brit) or drag somebody over the coals → jdm eine Standpauke halten, jdm die Leviten lesen; to heap coals of fire on somebody’s head → feurige Kohlen auf jds Haupt (dat) → sammeln

coal

in cpds → Kohlen-;

coal bed

n → Kohlenflöz m

coal bin, coal bunker

n → Kohlenkasten m

coal-black

adj → kohlrabenschwarz

coal cellar

n → Kohlenkeller m

coal dust

n → Kohlenstaub m, → (Kohlen)grus m

coal

coalface

n (Brit) → Streb m; men who work at the coal → Männer, die im Streb or vor Ort arbeiten; workers at the coal (fig) → diejenigen, die die Arbeit machen

coalfield

n → Kohlenrevier nt

coal fire

n → Kamin m; a coal heats better → ein Kohlenfeuer wärmt besser

coal-fired

adj → Kohle(n)-; coal power station → Kohlekraftwerk nt

coal hod

n → Kohleneimer m

coal hole

n → Kohlenbunker m

coal

coal man

n → Kohlenmann m

coal merchant

n → Kohlenhändler m

coal mine

n → Grube f, → Zeche f, → Kohlenbergwerk nt

coal miner

n → Bergmann m, → Kumpel m (inf)

coal-mining

n → Kohle(n)bergbau m; the coal industry → der Kohle(n)bergbau; coal area → Kohlenrevier nt

coal pit

n = coal mine

coal scuttle

n → Kohleneimer m, → Kohlenkasten m

coal seam

n → Kohlenflöz m

coal shed

n → Kohlenschuppen m

coal strike

n → Bergarbeiterstreik m

coal tar

n → Kohlenteer m

coal tar soap

n → Teerseife f

coal tip

n (Brit) → Kohlenhalde f

coal tit

n (Orn) → Tannenmeise f

coal yard

n → Kohlenhof m

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

coal

[kəʊl]

1. n → carbone m
to carry coals to Newcastle (fig) → portare acqua al mare

2. adj (fire) → di carbone; (industry) → del carbone; (stove) → a carbone

coal

(kəul) noun

a black mineral burned for fuel, heat etc.

ˈcoalfield noun

an area where there is coal to be mined.

ˈcoalmine noun

a mine from which coal is dug.

haul (someone) over the coals

to scold.

coal

→ فَحْم uhlí kul Kohle κάρβουνο carbón hiili charbon ugljen carbone 石炭 석탄 steenkool kull węgiel carvão уголь kol ถ่านหิน kömür than 煤

coal

n carbón m

References in classic literature ?

And you will see that even the mere handling of coal is a scientific matter and not to be sneered at.

View in context

When she was emptying the beans into the pan, one dropped without her observing it, and lay on the ground beside a straw, and soon afterwards a burning coal from the fire leapt down to the two.

View in context

This metal, in fact, is the most tenacious, the most ductile, and the most malleable, and consequently suitable for all moulding operations; and when smelted with pit coal, is of superior quality for all engineering works requiring great resisting power, such as cannon, steam boilers, hydraulic presses, and the like.

View in context

There was an old man, too, who used to come up our street with a little coal cart; he wore a coal-heaver's hat, and looked rough and black.

View in context

I opened the door of the coal cellar, and stood there in the darkness staring at the faintly lit doorway into the kitchen, and listen- ing.

View in context

Then it was fully a mile from the opening of the coal-mine to the face of the coal, and all, of course, was in the blackest darkness.

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A big coal waggon, loaded with lump coal and drawn by four huge horses, just debouching from Kearny Street as though to turn down Market, blocked their way.

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"Dickon," cried Mother Rigby, "a coal for my pipe!"

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I have sat before the dense coal fire and watched it all aglow, full of its tormented flaming life; and I have seen it wane at last, down, down, to dumbest dust.

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The following night they passed through the Strait of Bab-el-Mandeb, which means in Arabic The Bridge of Tears, and the next day they put in at Steamer Point, north-west of Aden harbour, to take in coal. This matter of fuelling steamers is a serious one at such distances from the coal-mines; it costs the Peninsular Company some eight hundred thousand pounds a year.

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"No, sir; but it wants electricity to make it move, and the wherewithal to make the electricity--sodium to feed the elements, coal from which to get the sodium, and a coal-mine to supply the coal.

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I've heard of the people going into raptures over beds of coal. We slept in one every night and were not in the least stuck up about it.