Oil vs. Gas — What's the Difference?

A liquid fossil fuel used mainly for combustion in engines and for manufacturing chemicals.

Often found alongside oil in underground reservoirs.

Extracted through drilling and pumping.

Can be liquefied for easier transportation.

Serves as a base for many industrial products.

Gas is one of the four fundamental states of matter (the others being solid, liquid, and plasma).A pure gas may be made up of individual atoms (e.g. a noble gas like neon), elemental molecules made from one type of atom (e.g.

Subject to global price fluctuations.

A substance or matter in a state in which it will expand freely to fill the whole of a container, having no fixed shape (unlike a solid) and no fixed volume (unlike a liquid)

Transported globally via tankers and pipelines.

Short for gasoline

An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is a viscous liquid at ambient temperatures and is both hydrophobic (does not mix with water, literally "water fearing") and lipophilic (mixes with other oils, literally "fat loving"). Oils have a high carbon and hydrogen content and are usually flammable and surface active.

An entertaining or amusing person or situation

A viscous liquid derived from petroleum, especially for use as a fuel or lubricant.

Kill or harm by exposure to gas

Oil paint

Talk excessively about trivial matters

Information or facts

Fill the tank of (a motor vehicle) with petrol

Lubricate, coat, or impregnate with oil

Very amusing or entertaining

Supply with oil as fuel

The state of matter distinguished from the solid and liquid states by relatively low density and viscosity, relatively great expansion and contraction with changes in pressure and temperature, the ability to diffuse readily, and the spontaneous tendency to become distributed uniformly throughout any container.

Any of numerous mineral, vegetable, or synthetic substances or animal or vegetable fats that are generally slippery, combustible, viscous, liquid or liquefiable at room temperatures, soluble in various organic solvents such as ether but not in water, and used in a great variety of products, especially lubricants and fuels.

A substance in the gaseous state.

Petroleum.

Any of various mixtures of flammable gases used for lighting, heating, or cooking.

A petroleum derivative, such as a machine oil or lubricant.

Gasoline.

A protective or cosmetic liquid applied to the skin or hair.

The speed control of a gasoline engine. Used with the

Oil paint.

A gaseous asphyxiant, irritant, or poison.

A painting done in oil paint.

A gaseous anesthetic, such as nitrous oxide.

To lubricate, supply, cover, or polish with oil.

Flatulence.

Liquid fat.

Flatus.

Petroleum-based liquid used as fuel or lubricant.

(Slang) Idle or boastful talk.

Petroleum

(Slang) Someone or something exceptionally exciting or entertaining

(countable) An oil painting.

To treat chemically with gas.

(painting) Oil paint.

To overcome, disable, or kill with poisonous fumes.

(attributive) Containing oil, conveying oil; intended for or capable of containing oil.

To give off gas.

(transitive) To lubricate with oil.

(Slang) To talk excessively.

(transitive) To grease with oil for cooking.

Matter in an intermediate state between liquid and plasma that can be contained only if it is fully surrounded by a solid (or in a bubble of liquid, or held together by gravitational pull); it can condense into a liquid, or can (rarely) become a solid directly by deposition.

Any one of a great variety of unctuous combustible substances, more viscous than and not miscible with water; as, olive oil, whale oil, rock oil, etc. They are of animal, vegetable, or mineral origin and of varied composition, and they are variously used for food, for solvents, for anointing, lubrication, illumination, etc. By extension, any substance of an oily consistency; as, oil of vitriol.

(uncountable) A flammable gaseous hydrocarbon or hydrocarbon mixture used as a fuel, e.g. for cooking, heating, electricity generation or as a fuel in internal combustion engines in vehicles, especially natural gas.

To smear or rub over with oil; to lubricate with oil; to anoint with oil.

Poison gas.

A slippery or viscous liquid or liquefiable substance not miscible with water

A chemical element or compound in such a state.

Oil paint used by an artist

(countable) A hob on a gas cooker.

Any of a group of liquid edible fats that are obtained from plants

(uncountable) Methane or other waste gases trapped in one's belly as a result of the digestive process; flatus.

Cover with oil, as if by rubbing;

(slang) A humorous or entertaining event or person.

Administer an oil or ointment to ; often in a religious ceremony of blessing

(slang) Frothy or boastful talk; chatter.

(baseball) A fastball.

Arterial or venous blood gas.

Marijuana, typically of high quality.

, a light derivative of petroleum used as fuel.

Ellipsis of gas pedal

An internal virtual currency used in Ethereum to pay for certain operations, such as blockchain transactions.

(transitive) To attack or kill with poison gas.

To talk in a boastful or vapid way; chatter.

To impose upon by talking boastfully.

(intransitive) To emit gas.

(transitive) To impregnate with gas.

(transitive) To singe, as in a gas flame, so as to remove loose fibers.

(US) To give a vehicle more fuel in order to accelerate it.

(US) To fill (a vehicle's fuel tank) with fuel.

(slang) comical, zany; fun, amusing.

An aëriform fluid; - a term used at first by chemists as synonymous with air, but since restricted to fluids supposed to be permanently elastic, as oxygen, hydrogen, etc., in distinction from vapors, as steam, which become liquid on a reduction of temperature. In present usage, since all of the supposed permanent gases have been liquified by cold and pressure, the term has resumed nearly its original signification, and is applied to any substance in the elastic or aëriform state.

A complex mixture of gases, of which the most important constituents are marsh gas, olefiant gas, and hydrogen, artificially produced by the destructive distillation of gas coal, or sometimes of peat, wood, oil, resin, etc. It gives a brilliant light when burned, and is the common gas used for illuminating purposes.

Same as gasoline; - a shortened form. Also, the accelerator pedal of a motor vehicle; used in the term " step on the gas".

The accelerator pedal of a motor vehicle; used in the term " step on the gas".

Same as natural gas.

An exceptionally enjoyable event; a good time; as, The concert was a gas.

To singe, as in a gas flame, so as to remove loose fibers; as, to gas thread.

To impregnate with gas; as, to gas lime with chlorine in the manufacture of bleaching powder.

To expose to a poisonous or noxious gas

The state of matter distinguished from the solid and liquid states by: relatively low density and viscosity; relatively great expansion and contraction with changes in pressure and temperature; the ability to diffuse readily; and the spontaneous tendency to become distributed uniformly throughout any container

A fluid in the gaseous state having neither independent shape nor volume and being able to expand indefinitely

A volatile flammable mixture of hydrocarbons (hexane and heptane and octane etc.) derived from petroleum; used mainly as a fuel in internal-combustion engines

A state of excessive gas in the alimentary canal

A pedal that controls the throttle valve;

A fossil fuel in the gaseous state; used for cooking and heating homes

Attack with gas; subject to gas fumes;

Show off

A gaseous fossil fuel primarily composed of methane, used for heating and power generation.

Considered a cleaner alternative to coal for electricity.

Plays a key role in modern energy strategies.

Both oil and gas are crucial to the global energy supply, with oil dominating the transportation sector and gas increasingly used in power generation and heating due to its cleaner-burning properties.

Technologies like hydraulic fracturing (fracking) and horizontal drilling have significantly increased the accessibility of gas, while enhanced oil recovery techniques have improved oil extraction efficiency.

Oil prices are more influenced by international relations and global market dynamics, making them more susceptible to geopolitical events and supply disruptions.

Yes, it's common to find gas in the same reservoirs as oil, often either mixed with oil or as a cap of gas above the oil.

Oil and gas production can significantly boost national economies, providing jobs, energy security, and substantial revenues from exports.

Gas burns cleaner than oil, emitting fewer pollutants and CO2, but concerns about methane leaks during extraction and transport can reduce its environmental benefits.

Countries with substantial oil and gas reserves often use them as strategic assets in global politics and economics, impacting everything from national security to economic policies.

Oil is primarily used for transportation fuels and as a raw material in chemicals, while gas is used for heating, cooking, and electricity generation.

Oil is transported via large tanker ships and extensive pipeline networks, whereas gas is transported through pipelines or as liquefied natural gas (LNG) in tankers.

As renewable energy sources become more prevalent and technologies advance, the demand for oil and gas is expected to decline, potentially leading to shifts in how these resources are valued and traded.