Where does “petroleum” come from?

Petroleum comes from Medieval Latin petroleum, formed from Latin oleum (oil) and petra (stone), ultimately deriving from Ancient Greek ἔλαιον (élаion, oil).

petroleum (English): a flammable liquid ranging in color from clear to...

Definitions

  1. a flammable liquid ranging in color from clear to...

Ancestry of “petroleum”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Medieval Latinpetroleum
2Latinoleumolive oil; the palaestra
3Ancient Greekἔλαιονolive oil, commonly used as an anointing oil; any...
4Ancient Greekἐλαίαolive tree; olive; naevus
5Proto-Hellenicelaíwā
6Proto-Indo-Europeanloiwom

Words derived from “petroleum

Every word from Proto-Indo-European loiwom
petroleum — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer