..Is there something I am missing?
2006-08-29 19:35:11 · 12 answers · asked by Claude 6 in Society & Culture ➔ Languages
It's short for gasoline, which is the proper name for the liquid you put in your car. Petrol is short for petroleum, which is actually refers to the _unrefined_ mixture that is used to _make_ gasoline. Look it up in a dictionary :)
The Oxford English Dictionary defines petroleum as: "A viscous liquid, consisting chiefly of a mixture of hydrocarbons and varying in colour from black or dark brown to light yellow, that is formed by the decomposition of organic matter buried in sediments, is present in some rock formations (sometimes seeping out on to the ground), and is extracted and refined to produce fuels (esp. petrol, paraffin, and diesel) and other substances; mineral oil."
They define gasoline as "A volatile inflammable liquid, one of the first products in the distillation of crude petroleum, employed for purposes of heating and illumination."
So tell me, which term makes more sense?
2006-08-29 19:43:30 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 1⤋
Lover - you will by no ability hear an Australian say "positioned yet another shrimp on the barbie" the two. We ROFL while we hear Yanks say that. EDIT: P'rushim - we don't call a pond a billabong. We call ponds, ponds. A billabong is the two an oxbow lake shaped while a loop of a waterway is shrink off from the main valuable flow or a largish pool of water left while a waterway in part dries up. Samuel - Why is a contraction of the be conscious 'gasoline' extra superb than a contraction of the be conscious 'petroleum'? it style of feels to me that they are approximately equivalent. Evo741... - A trunk is an elephant's nostril (or a great transportable carrying case) and a hood is likewise an merchandise of headwear - pilgrim headgear and an merchandise of shoes at the instant are not any stranger than those words. My element with any of the above isn't that the words we use are extra advantageous than the yank ones, in basic terms that English audio gadget from distinctive international locations have their own sub-set of English and is no longer that a good element? that is not almost as uninteresting as a lifeless language like Latin.
2016-12-17 19:36:44 · answer #2 · answered by bunton 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Petro...short for petroleum
Gas...short for gasoline
Gasoline is a refined form of petroleum. Much like kerosine, although kerosine has a different chemical compound and is actually much more unstable.
If you're gonna' get all bent out of shape about gasoline being called gas in America, then why my friend is a cigarette in England called a fag?
:P, wow....even fag is blocked out in Yahoo answers...hmmm.
2006-08-29 19:44:30 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
because refined pretroleum is called gasoline...and we love
to shorten things so gasoline became gas.
Makes as much sense as the British calling the 2nd
floor of a building the first floor. Explain that one to me.
2006-08-29 19:43:07 · answer #4 · answered by Caiman94941 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Its called the dumbing down of the English language. Btw (by the way) What does bollocks mean?
2006-08-29 19:40:00 · answer #5 · answered by tattoomeats 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Why do the British call gasoline petro, short for petroleum, when it's not really petroleum?
2006-08-29 19:41:24 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
It's just a shortening of the word Gasoline.
2006-08-29 19:38:07 · answer #7 · answered by d h 3 · 4⤊ 0⤋
To confuse the Brits.
2006-08-29 22:57:26 · answer #8 · answered by undir 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
who realy cares,my jag askes for pemium gas
not petrol
2006-08-29 19:43:37 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Thanks for the question. I've sometimes wondered that myself (I'm French), and for some reason never thought of "gasoline".
2006-08-30 04:18:00 · answer #10 · answered by Offkey 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋