English
butane
PIE word *gʷṓws IUPAC nomenclature, from but- (“four carbon prefix”) + -ane (“alkane suffix”), the former is derived from the same stem as the foul-smelling carboxylic acid liberated in rancid butter, "butyric acid", hence cognate with butter.
Formed from but- ‘four carbon prefix’ + -ane ‘alkane suffix’
Ancient Greek βούτυρον ‘butter’
English but-
The story
IUPAC nomenclature, from but- (‘four carbon prefix’) + -ane (‘alkane suffix’), the former is derived from the same stem as the foul-smelling carboxylic acid liberated in rancid butter, "butyric acid", hence cognate with butter.
Today it means
noun A hydrocarbon (either of the two isomers of C₄H₁₀, n-butane and 2-methylpropane) found in gaseous petroleum fractions.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / butane