gas

(găs)

n. pl. gas·es or gas·ses

a. The state of matter distinguished from the solid and liquid states by relatively low density and viscosity, relatively great expansion and contraction with changes in pressure and temperature, the ability to diffuse readily, and the spontaneous tendency to become distributed uniformly throughout any container.

b. A substance in the gaseous state.

2. Any of various mixtures of flammable gases used for lighting, heating, or cooking.

3. Gasoline.

4. The speed control of a gasoline engine. Used with the: Step on the gas.

5. A gaseous asphyxiant, irritant, or poison.

6. A gaseous anesthetic, such as nitrous oxide.

a. Flatulence.

b. Flatus.

8. Slang Idle or boastful talk.

9. Slang Someone or something exceptionally exciting or entertaining: The party was a gas.

v. gassed, gas·sing, gas·es or gas·ses

v. tr.

1. To treat chemically with gas.

2. To overcome, disable, or kill with poisonous fumes.

v. intr.

1. To give off gas.

2. Slang To talk excessively.

Phrasal Verb:

gas up

To supply a vehicle with gas or gasoline: gas up a car; gassed up before the trip.

[Dutch, an occult physical principle supposed to be present in all bodies, alteration of Greek khaos, chaos, empty space, coined by Jan Baptista van Helmont (1577-1644), Flemish chemist.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

gassing

(ˈɡæsɪŋ)

1. (Chemistry) the act or process of supplying or treating with gas

2. the affecting or poisoning of people with gas or fumes

3. (Chemistry) the evolution of a gas, esp in electrolysis

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun	1.	gassing - the process of interacting with gas chemical action, chemical change, chemical process - (chemistry) any process determined by the atomic and molecular composition and structure of the substances involved
	2.	gassing - the deliberate act of poisoning some person or animal with gas poisoning - the act of giving poison to a person or animal with the intent to kill

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References in periodicals archive

"This being a petroleum producing nation, the price should be even lower," says a smiling Luis Padilla, gassing up his Ford Econoline van at a Caracas Mobil station.

Fill'er up: President Hugo Chavez holds down gasoline prices, creating a black market and costing his government billions

I am angered that the black bloc, just a handful of militant protesters, attacked the police--and that the police reacted by gassing and wounding thousands of peaceful demonstrators.

On the Front Lines at the FTAA Protests

Among the most common of these are filtering for inclusion removal; degassing techniques to reduce or eliminate hydrogen porosity; and fluxing for the removal of trace elements and to prevent gassing of the metal.

Cleaning up your metal