white coal

American  

noun

1. Informal. water, as of a stream, used for power.

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white coal British  

noun

1. water, esp when flowing and providing a potential source of usable power

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Etymology

Origin of white coal

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

He used white coal ash for the lines.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 12, 2023

It features both the Carter Family’s foundational rural twang and Mississippi John Hurt’s sweet blues music; and mixes Southern Black jug bands with banjo-playing white coal miners.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 24, 2020

There is surely enough "white coal" rushing by us to turn the wheels of the factories of a continent.

From The New North by Cameron, Agnes Deans

As Ontario, Quebec and Manitoba have no coal mines, "white coal" is a vital necessity.

From Canada by Bourinot, John George, Sir

Hence the waterfalls are sometimes termed the "white coal" of that country.

From Marvels of Scientific Invention An Interesting Account in Non-technical Language of the Invention of Guns, Torpedoes, Submarine Mines, Up-to-date Smelting, Freezing, Colour Photography, and many other recent Discoveries of Science by Corbin, Thomas W.