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Showing results for bitumen. Search instead for Bitume.
Synonyms

bitumen

American  
[bahy-too-muhn, -tyoo-, bih-, bich-oo-] / baɪˈtu mən, -ˈtyu-, bɪ-, ˈbɪtʃ ʊ- /

noun

  1. any of various natural substances, as asphalt, maltha, or gilsonite, consisting mainly of hydrocarbons.

  2. (formerly) an asphalt of Asia Minor used as cement and mortar.

bitumen British  
/ ˈbɪtjʊmɪn, bɪˈtjuːmɪnəs /

noun

  1. any of various viscous or solid impure mixtures of hydrocarbons that occur naturally in asphalt, tar, mineral waxes, etc: used as a road surfacing and roofing material

  2. the constituents of coal that can be extracted by an organic solvent

  3. any liquid suitable for coating aggregates

    1. informal any road with a bitumen surface

    2. informal (capital) the road in the Northern Territory between Darwin and Alice Springs

  5. a transparent brown pigment or glaze made from asphalt

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
bitumen Scientific  
/ bĭ-to̅o̅′mən /

  1. Any of various flammable mixtures of hydrocarbons and other substances found in asphalt and tar. Bitumens occur naturally or are produced from petroleum and coal.

Other Word Forms

  • bituminoid adjective
  • bituminous adjective

Etymology

Origin of bitumen

1425–75; late Middle English bithumen < Latin bitūmen

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

It is sanctioned by the US for Iran-related trade and many of its past trips to the Gulf had been to Iran, picking up Iranian bitumen and asphalt to ship to Asia.

From Barron's • Apr. 14, 2026

Also known as bitumen, asphalt is a sticky black substance derived from crude oil, widely used to construct roads, highways and airport runways.

From BBC • Feb. 3, 2025

Volatile dilutants added to the heavy bitumen from Alberta enable it to flow through the pipeline.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 4, 2024

Veniamin Kondratyev, the head of the regional government, said the Ukrainians drones had targeted two oil refineries, a bitumen plant, and a military airfield in Kuban.

From New York Times • Apr. 27, 2024

A hard, compact variety of mineral coal, of high luster, differing from bituminous coal in containing little or no bitumen, in consequence of which it burns with a nearly non luminous flame.

From Webster's Unabridged Dictionary by Webster, Noah

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.