Definition of "charcoal" []

• A black, porous, carbonaceous material, 85 to 98 percent carbon, produced by the destructive distillation of wood and used as a fuel, filter, and absorbent. (noun)
• A drawing pencil or crayon made from this material. (noun)
• A drawing executed with such a pencil or crayon. (noun)
• A dark grayish brown to black or dark purplish gray. (noun)
• To draw, write, or blacken with a black, carbonaceous material. (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "The oil burns intensely for several minutes before the paper wick burns up, and by that time, your charcoal is ablaze like the Cuyahoga River."
• "The foliage is exceptional as well, a very dark shade of green that looks almost charcoal from a distance."
• "Gastric decontamination with activated charcoal is recommended."