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carbón

coal

noun kahr-BOHN Less Common

Origin: From Latin carbo, carbonis (coal, charcoal).

Also means

charcoal

Usage Note

Carbón covers both mineral coal (carbón mineral) and charcoal (carbón vegetal). In the Christmas tradition shared across Spain and Latin America, naughty children receive carbón (coal) from the Three Kings. Don't confuse it with carbono, which is the chemical element carbon.

Examples

"La calefacción antigua usaba carbón."

Natural Translation

Old heating systems used coal.

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