petro-

¹

1. a combining form meaning “rock,” “stone,” used in the formation of compound words:

   petrology.

petro-

²

1. a combining form meaning “petroleum,” “the extraction and export of petroleum,” used in the formation of compound words:

   petrochemistry; petropower.

petro

³

[ pe-troh ]

adjective

1. of or relating to petroleum or the petroleum industry.

noun

1. Canadian. the federally owned petroleum industry.

petro-

combining_form

1. indicating stone or rock

   petrology

2. indicating petroleum, its products, etc

   petrochemical

3. of or relating to a petroleum-producing country

   petrostate

Word History and Origins

Origin of petro-¹

< Greek, combining form of pétra rock, pétros a stone

Origin of petro-²

Extracted from petroleum

Origin of petro-³

First recorded in 1970–75; independent use of petro- ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of petro-¹

from Greek petra rock or petros stone

Example Sentences

They predict the government of President Petro Poroshenko may not last another three months.

From The Daily Beast

MOSCOW, Russia — On Friday Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko accepted President Vladimir Putin's peace plan for Ukraine.

From The Daily Beast

Petro Poroshenko proposes a utopian solution to the problem.

From The Daily Beast

Taking market share from Moscow would diminish its political leverage, while also weakening its petro-centric economy.

From The Daily Beast

According to opinion polls, the most popular leader in Ukraine and very possibly its next president is Petro Poroshenko.

From The Daily Beast

Pray tell me, Is this stern woman still upon the flaunt Of bold defiance?Petro.

From Project Gutenberg

Couldn't git nothing out of 'em except some more parrot-cackle: 'Vote same Petro.

From Project Gutenberg

Petro'nius Max'imus "poisoned" the emperor, and the empress killed Maximus.

From Project Gutenberg

In the infant, also, the petro-squamous and the squamo-mastoid suture are still patent.

From Project Gutenberg

Its wall was of boards, and the gray shingled roof jutted out overhead just as if inviting Eve and Petro to its shelter.

From Project Gutenberg

Words That Use petro-

What does petro- mean?

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 pétra, meaning “rock.” Two Latin translations of pétra 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 Words 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.

Examples of petro- with the sense “rock”

One example of a term that features petro– in the sense of “rock” is petrology, “the scientific study of rocks.”

The petro– part of the word means “rock,” as we have already seen. The –logy part of the word may also look familiar; it is used to name sciences or bodies of knowledge, from Greek logía. Petrology literally translates to “rock science.”

What are some words that use the combining form petro-?

• petrogenesis
• petroglyph (using the equivalent form of petro– in French)
• petrogram
• petrosal (using the equivalent form of petro– in Latin)

What are some other forms that petro– may be commonly confused with?

• per-
• peri-
• peta-
• pro-

Break it down!

A glyph is a pictograph or hieroglyph. With this in mind, what is a petroglyph?

Examples of petro- with the sense “petroleum”

A technical term that features the form petro– as an abbreviation of petroleum is petrodollar, “money, paid in dollars, earned by a country for the exporting of petroleum.”

The petro– part of the word is short for “petroleum”, and the –dollar part of the word represents the US dollar. Petrodollar literally means “money [for] petroleum.”

What are some words that use the combining form petro-?

• petrobutanol
• petrochemical
• petropower
• petrostate

What are some other forms that petro– may be commonly confused with?

• per-
• peri-
• peta-
• pro-

Break it down!

There are many different kinds of power wielded by states and nations, such as military power and soft power. With this in mind, what is petropower?