oil well

noun

1. a well that yields or has yielded oil.

oil well

noun

1. a boring into the earth or sea bed for the extraction of petroleum

Word History and Origins

Origin of oil well¹

An Americanism dating back to 1840–50

Example Sentences

The bipartisan infrastructure package being negotiated in the Senate promises to fund some important climate programs, with sizable expenditures for cleaning up abandoned oil wells, replacing lead pipes and repairing roads and bridges.

From Time

A map of California real estate listings will advertise schools and walk scores but omit the proximity to active or decommissioned oil wells in an effort to conceal the health risks of buying in that area.

From Outside Online

Plus NOAA can toggle on a map over the satellite image showing known oil wells and natural seeps.

From Voice of San Diego

Tucked out of sight, oil wells run thousands of feet deep, tapping thick crude from one of California’s many urban oil fields.

From ProPublica

Many oil wells sit in low-income, nonwhite neighborhoods with less political clout, elected officials and experts note.

From ProPublica

When the tube heats up, it creates steam that can be injected into the oil well.

From The Daily Beast

From the station she could see half a dozen one-story shacks and, beyond, the outline of oil well derricks.

From Project Gutenberg

In these systems, the oil well is generally located in a "secondary" bottom of the crank case.

From Project Gutenberg

From his description, we thought his oil well was an honest-to-goodness well, and we sold a lot of stock for him.

From Project Gutenberg

The surreptitious pictures of the oil well were also recovered and destroyed.

From Project Gutenberg

And this camera was pointed directly at the oil well and at the Comet players.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• gusher
• oil rig
• oilfield