bitumen
pronunciation
How to pronounce bitumen in British English:
UK [ˈbɪtʃəmən]
How to pronounce bitumen in American English:
US [bəˈtumən]
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- Noun:
- any of various naturally occurring impure mixtures of hydrocarbons
Word Origin
- bitumen
- bitumen: see cud
- bitumen (n.)
- mid-15c., from Latin bitumen "asphalt," probably, via Oscan or Umbrian, from Celtic *betu- "birch, birch resin" (compare Gaulish betulla "birch," used by Pliny for the tree supposedly the source of bitumen).
Example
- 1. The method involves a piece of copper covered with light sensitive bitumen .
- 2. Companies extract bitumen from a mix of quartz sand in an expensive and energy-intensive process .
- 3. Much of the initial investment was in oil sands highly viscous bitumen coated sand deposits found mainly in canada .
- 4. In their natural state , oil sands are made of quartz sand covered by layers of water and bitumen .
- 5. Typically it involves drilling wells to pump steam into the ground to melt the bitumen and make it easier to suck up to the surface .