fuel

fuel oil, heating oil

noun FYOOL Rare

Origin: Borrowing from English 'fuel'

Usage Note

Fuel in French specifically refers to heavy fuel oil used for heating — le fuel domestique is home heating oil, distinct from l'essence (petrol/gasoline) or le diesel. It is also written fioul in official French spelling recommendations. The English source word 'fuel' has broader scope, so this is a partial false friend for English speakers.

Examples

"La chaudière fonctionne au fuel depuis vingt ans."

Natural Translation

The boiler has run on heating oil for twenty years.

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