something that provides or causes propulsion, such as the explosive charge in a gun or the fuel in a rocket the gas used to carry the liquid droplets in an aerosol spray
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
pro•pel•lant /prəˈpɛlənt/USA pronunciation
n.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- something, as a substance, that propels, as rocket fuel: [countable]a liquid propellant.[uncountable]A rocket needs propellant.
- Chemistry[uncountable] a gas that forces out the contents of an aerosol container when the pressure is released.
pro•pel•lant
(prə pel′ənt),USA pronunciation n.
- a propelling agent.
- the charge of explosive used to propel the projectile from a gun.
- Rocketrya substance, usually a mixture of fuel and oxidizer, for propelling a rocket.
- Chemistrya compressed inert gas that serves to dispense the contents of an aerosol container when the pressure is released.
- propel + -ant 1915–20
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
'propellant' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
Aerobee
- Agena
- Ariane
- Minuteman
- Thor
- aerosol
- ant
- atlas
- bipropellant
- burn
- burnout
- centaur
- characteristic velocity
- charge
- composite
- cutoff
- dichlorodifluoromethane
- fluorocarbon
- grain
- hypergolic
- inertial upper stage
- liquid propellant
- payload assist module
- powder charge
- propellent
- regenerative cooling
- rocket engine
- solid fuel
- solid propellant
- solid rocket booster
- specific impulse
- squib
- stage
- turbopump
- ullage
- vanguard
- zero stage