Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

butane

/ˈbjuːteɪn/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: 2.62 in modern English

Syllables
bu-tane
IPA
/ˈbjuːteɪn/
8
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
6
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A hydrocarbon (either of the two isomers of C₄H₁₀, n-butane and 2-methylpropane) found in gaseous petroleum fractions.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

The n-butane isomer only.

Uncountable

Etymology

PIE word *gʷṓws IUPAC nomenclature, from but- (“four carbon prefix”) + -ane (“alkane suffix”), the former is derived from the same stem as the foul-smelling carboxylic acid liberated in rancid butter, "butyric acid", hence cognate with butter.

Word Breakdown

Usage

Inflected Forms

butanes (plural)

Derived Forms

bromobutane butanediol butanedione butanethiol butanoic butanol butyl chlorobutane cyclobutane dibromobutane dichlorobutane iodobutane

Phrases

n-butane

Frequently Paired Words

alkane ethane methane pentane propane

Synonyms

E943a

Rhymes With

main pain campaign train brain explain remain gain plane rain chain maintain

Questions

How do you pronounce butane?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈbjuːteɪn/.
What does butane mean?
A hydrocarbon (either of the two isomers of C₄H₁₀, n-butane and 2-methylpropane) found in gaseous petroleum fractions.
Where does butane come from?
PIE word *gʷṓws IUPAC nomenclature, from but- (“four carbon prefix”) + -ane (“alkane suffix”), the former is derived from the same stem as the foul-smelling carboxylic acid liberated in rancid butter, "butyric acid", hence cognate with butter.

How to pronounce butane

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “butane”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈbjuːteɪn/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “butane”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “butane” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.