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| coal [ kōl ] |
noun (plural coals) |
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| Definition: |
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1. black rock used as fuel: a hard black or dark brown sedimentary rock formed by the decomposition of plant material, widely used as a fuel
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2. coal lump: a piece of coal
  hot coals
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3. small piece of combustible material: any small piece of combustible material
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4. chemistry
Same as charcoal (sense 1)
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verb (past and past participle coaled, present participle coal·ing, 3rd person present singular coals) |
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| Definition: |
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1. transitive verb convert something into charcoal: to burn something combustible and convert it into charcoal
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2. transitive and intransitive verb provide or take on coal: to supply something with coal, or take on coal
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| [ Old English col< Indo-European, "glowing ember"] |
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| coal·y adjective |
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carry or take coals to Newcastle to do something superfluous or supply something that is already plentiful
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rake somebody over the coals U.K. to reprimand somebody severely
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