propellant
propellant Lexical Profile
propellant Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A chemical substance, such as fuel and oxidizer in a rocket engine, that is burned or otherwise reacted to produce thrust and drive a vehicle or projectile forward.
"The spacecraft relies on a liquid propellant to achieve the thrust needed to enter orbit."
A compressed gas or volatile liquid kept under pressure inside a container to expel the contents as a fine spray or foam when the valve is released.
"Modern aerosol cans use environmentally safer gases as a propellant to dispense hairspray and deodorants."
• adjective
Serving or tending to drive, push, or propel something forward.
"The engineers measured the propellant force generated by the new turbine design."
Word Nuance & Usage
While 'propellant' and 'propellent' are sometimes used interchangeably, contemporary standard usage strongly favors 'propellant' for the noun and reserves 'propellent' as an occasional variant for the adjective.
• Rhymes for propellant
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Derived from the Latin 'propellentem', the present participle of 'propellere' ('to drive forth'), formed from 'pro-' ('forward') and 'pellere' ('to drive').