Paraffin

[par-uh-fin] /ˈpær ə fɪn/

noun
1.
a white or colorless, tasteless, odorless, water-insoluble, solid substance not easily acted upon by reagents, consisting of a mixture of hydrocarbons chiefly of the alkane series, obtained from crude petroleum: used in candles, for forming preservative coatings and seals, for waterproofing paper, etc.
2.
Chemistry.

3.
Also called paraffin oil. British. .
verb (used with object)
4.
to cover or impregnate with paraffin.
/ˈpærəfɪn/
noun
1.
Also called paraffin oil, (esp US and Canadian) kerosene. a liquid mixture consisting mainly of alkane hydrocarbons with boiling points in the range 150°–300°C, used as an aircraft fuel, in domestic heaters, and as a solvent
2.
another name for alkane
3.
See paraffin wax
4.
See liquid paraffin
verb (transitive)
5.
to treat with paraffin or paraffin wax
n.

1838, from German Paraffin, coined c.1830 by German chemist Karl von Reichenbach (1788-1869), who first obtained it as a waxy substance from wood tar, irregularly from Latin parum “not very, too little,” probably related to parvus “little, small” (see parvi-) + affinis “associated with” (see affinity).

So called because paraffin is chemically not closely related to other substances. The liquid form (originally parafin oil) Reichenbach called eupion, but this was the standard meaning of paraffin in English by 1860.
paraffin
(pār’ə-fĭn)