- naphtha
- "inflammable liquid distilled from petroleum," 1572, from L., from Gk. naphtha "bitumen," perhaps from Pers. neft "pitch," or Aramaic naphta, nephta, but these could as well be from Gk. Naphthalene was coined 1821 by Eng. chemist John Kidd (1775-1851) from naphtha + chem. suffix -ine + -l- for the sake of euphony.