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petro-
1a combining form meaning “rock,” “stone,” used in the formation of compound words.
petrology.
petro-
2a combining form meaning “petroleum,” “the extraction and export of petroleum,” used in the formation of compound words.
petrochemistry; petropower.
petro
3[pe-troh]
adjective
of or relating to petroleum or the petroleum industry.
noun
Canadian.the federally owned petroleum industry.
petro-
combining form
indicating stone or rock
petrology
indicating petroleum, its products, etc
petrochemical
of or relating to a petroleum-producing country
petrostate
51Թ History and Origins
Origin of petro-1
51Թ History and Origins
Origin of petro-1
Example Sentences
Colombian President Gustavo Petro said on X that a cartel known as Los Reyes had “hired the Colombian mercenaries to confront the Mexican state.”
President Petro is pushing a bill that would require Colombia to sign on to a United Nations convention against the recruitment, financing and training of mercenaries.
The government of left wing President Gustavo Petro said it "categorically and forcefully" condemned the attack as an "act of violence not only against his person, but also against democracy."
"You want to believe he is coming home, at the same time you can't believe it," said Petro Sereda, 61, a bus driver from Irpin, near Kyiv, whose son Artym was taken prisoner more than three years ago.
Petro and his wife live in shipping container-style temporary accommodation in Irpin, because their home was destroyed in the invasion.
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When To Use
Petro- is a combining form used like a prefix that has two distinct senses.The first of these senses is “rock” or "stone," and this form of petro- is occasionally used in a variety of scientific and technical terms. Petro- comes from Greek éٰ, meaning “rock.” Two Latin translations of éٰ are lapis and saxum, both meaning “stone,” which are the roots of terms such as lapis lazuli and saxifrage, respectively. To learn more, check out our entries for both words.The second of these senses is “petroleum,” and this form of petro- is occasionally used in a variety of technical terms. Petro- is an abbreviation of the word petroleum, from the Medieval Latin word for "rock oil; the -oleum element means "oil" in Latin. Find out more about the word petroleum at our entry for the word.What are variants of petro- with the sense “rock”?Petri- is a variant of petro-, which exchanges its -o- for an -i- when combined with words or word elements beginning with certain consonants. Another variant for petro- in this sense is petr-, which loses its -o- combined with words or word elements beginning with vowels. Want to know more? Read our 51Թs That Use articles for petri- and petr-.Not every word that begins with the exact letters petro- or petr-, such as petronel or petrel, is necessarily using the combining form petro- to denote “rock” or "petroleum.” Learn why petrel is the name of a seabird at our entry for the word.
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