COAL

Coal

Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure. Coal is composed primarily of carbon along with variable quantities of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen.

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coal

Noun

  1. A black rock formed from prehistoric plant remains, composed largely of carbon and burned as a fuel.
  2. A piece of coal used for burning. Note that in British English the first of the following examples would usually be used, whereas in American English the latter would.
    Put some coals on the fire.
    Put some coal on the fire.
  3. A type of coal, such as bituminous, anthracite, or lignite, and grades and varieties thereof.
  4. A smouldering piece of material.
    Just as the camp-fire died down to just coals, with no flames to burn the marshmallows, someone dumped a whole load of wood on, so I gave up and went to bed.

Verb

  1. To take on a supply of coal (usually of steam ships).
  2. To be converted to charcoal.
  3. To burn to charcoal; to char.
  4. To mark or delineate with charcoal.
  5. To supply with coal.
    to coal a steamer


The above text is a snippet from Wiktionary: coal
and as such is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

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