What does "carburetor" mean?

A device in an internal combustion engine where fuel is vaporized and mixed with air prior to ignition.

What is a synonym for "carburetor"?

Common synonyms include: accelerator, auto, automobile, carb, carb, carburettor.

Pronounced //ˈkɑːb(j)əˌɹɛtə//.

//ˈkɑːb(j)əˌɹɛtə// noun, slang

noun, slang ·Moderate ·College level

Noun

1
A device in an internal combustion engine where fuel is vaporized and mixed with air prior to ignition. Canada, US
"Near-synonym: gasifier"
2
mixes air with gasoline vapor prior to explosion wordnet
3
A device for enhancing illuminating gas by mixing in carbon-rich fuel. obsolete
"Second, the employment of a current of air between the carburettor and the tube leading to the burner, is described. The Mechanics' Magazine, July 25, 1862."
4
A water pipe or bong; a device or contrivance for mixing air with burning cannabis or cocaine. slang
"Variations on the bong included air-driven pipes, electric pipes, ice pipes (chillers), mask pipes, chamber pipes, and carburetor pipes."

""I think we should clean the carburetor." "I already tried that.""

Attested from 1862, from carburet (“enrich an illuminating gas with carbon-rich fuel”) + -or. The motor vehicle sense is attested since 1896

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.