tetraethyl lead
noun
tet·ra·eth·yl lead
ˌte-trə-ˌe-thəl-ˈled 
: a heavy oily poisonous liquid Pb(C2H5)4 used especially formerly as an antiknock agent
Examples of tetraethyl lead in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Starting in the 1920s, oil companies began adding tetraethyl lead to gasoline to reduce engine knocking.
—
Rachel Silverman Bonnifield, Foreign Affairs, 22 Jan. 2024
Lead pollution rose throughout the Industrial Revolution, but exposure skyrocketed after the first gallon of gasoline with tetraethyl lead was sold in 1923.
—Michael J. Coren, Quartz, 16 June 2022
The avgas market is dominated by about eight US refineries and one (troubled) UK company producing the world’s supply of tetraethyl lead.
—Michael J. Coren, Quartz, 16 June 2022
The new fuel was tetraethyl lead.
—Bill Kovarik, The Conversation, 8 Dec. 2021
The dark truth about Ethyl is that everyone involved in its creation had seen incontrovertible evidence that tetraethyl lead was shockingly harmful to humans.
—Steven Johnson, New York Times, 15 Mar. 2023
Virtually every small airplane in the US burns fuel containing tetraethyl lead (TEL), an additive introduced in the 1920s to boost octane levels.
—David Yanofsky, Quartz, 16 June 2022
But humanity didn’t enter uncharted territory until the first gallon of gasoline was sold with tetraethyl lead in 1923.
—Michael J. Coren, Quartz, 16 June 2022
There was tetraethyl lead, used in making gasoline, sludge, asphalt, hydrocarbon liquids and vapors, solvents such as kerosene, acidic residue and asbestos.
—Kaitlin Durbin, cleveland, 4 Apr. 2022
Rachel Silverman Bonnifield, Foreign Affairs, 22 Jan. 2024
Lead pollution rose throughout the Industrial Revolution, but exposure skyrocketed after the first gallon of gasoline with tetraethyl lead was sold in 1923.
—Michael J. Coren, Quartz, 16 June 2022
The avgas market is dominated by about eight US refineries and one (troubled) UK company producing the world’s supply of tetraethyl lead.
—Michael J. Coren, Quartz, 16 June 2022
The new fuel was tetraethyl lead.
—Bill Kovarik, The Conversation, 8 Dec. 2021
The dark truth about Ethyl is that everyone involved in its creation had seen incontrovertible evidence that tetraethyl lead was shockingly harmful to humans.
—Steven Johnson, New York Times, 15 Mar. 2023
Virtually every small airplane in the US burns fuel containing tetraethyl lead (TEL), an additive introduced in the 1920s to boost octane levels.
—David Yanofsky, Quartz, 16 June 2022
But humanity didn’t enter uncharted territory until the first gallon of gasoline was sold with tetraethyl lead in 1923.
—Michael J. Coren, Quartz, 16 June 2022
There was tetraethyl lead, used in making gasoline, sludge, asphalt, hydrocarbon liquids and vapors, solvents such as kerosene, acidic residue and asbestos.
—Kaitlin Durbin, cleveland, 4 Apr. 2022
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tetraethyl lead.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Tetraethyl lead.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tetraethyl%20lead. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
tetraethyl lead
noun
tet·ra·eth·yl lead
ˌte-trə-ˌeth-əl-ˈled
: a heavy oily poisonous liquid added to gasoline to prevent engines from knocking
Medical Definition
tetraethyl lead
noun
tet·ra·eth·yl lead
ˌte-trə-ˌeth-əl-ˈled
: a heavy oily poisonous liquid Pb(C2H5)4 used as an antiknock agent in gasoline
called also lead tetraethyl
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