What does "petrochemical" mean?

Any chemical derived from petroleum.

What is a synonym for "petrochemical"?

Common synonyms include: alcohol, chemical.

adj, noun

adj, noun ·5 syllables ·Rare ·Advanced level

Noun

1
Any chemical derived from petroleum.
"Another is a Bloomberg project we're participating in that looks beyond petrochemicals."
2
any compound obtained from petroleum or natural gas wordnet
3
Any chemical derived from any of the fossil fuels: petroleum, natural gas, or coal.
"As the prices of petroleum, natural gas, and coal fluctuate over the years, the petrochemical industry can to some extent switch feedstocks."

Adjective

1
Of or pertaining to the such compounds, or the industry that produces them. not-comparable
"In 2006, about 6 percent of the world's crude oil production was used in non-energy applications, primarily as a petrochemical feedstock."

"Initial tests of McIntyre's well water showed unsafe levels of toluene, a volatile and toxic petrochemical that causes nausea and headaches."

From petro- + chemical.

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