Definition of "oil-shale" []

• Shaly rocks containing bituminous matter or petroleum in sufficient quantity to be of economical value; shales or clays in which a considerable quantity of organic (hydrocarbonaceous) matter has been preserved and is diffused through the mass of the rock. (noun)

The Century Dictionary (Public Domain)

• "Pulling the EPA stopper out of the energy bottleneck would make nuclear power which the EPA has kept off the table for nearly 50 years viable, which would in turn decrease our fossil-fuel demands, which could be met by developing our own extensive petroleum, natural gas and oil-shale reserves."
• "The executive said the company is following closely the oil-shale acquisitions some of its U.S. rivals have recently made in the U.S. and that it is working on developing its oil-shale portfolio."
• "Also recently, the administration deferred until 2013 a decision on approvals for an oil-shale pipeline from Canada that had divided two Democratic constituencies, environmentalists and labor unions."