Etymology

The word "gasolene" was coined in 1865 from the word gas and the chemical suffix -ine/-ene. The modern spelling was first used in 1871. The shortened form "gas" for gasoline was first recorded in American English in 1905 and is often confused with the older words gas and gases that have been used since the early 1600s.Gasoline originally referred to any liquid used as the fuel for a gasoline-powered engine, other than diesel fuel or liquefied gas; methanol racing fuel would have been classed as a type of gasoline.The word "petrol" was first used in reference to the refined substance in 1892 (it was previously used to refer to unrefined petroleum), and was registered as a trade name by British wholesaler Carless, Capel & Leonard at the suggestion of Frederick Richard Simms.Carless's competitors used the term "motor spirit" until the 1930s, but never officially registered it as a trademark.It has also been suggested that the word gasoline was coined by Edward Butler in 1887.