CARBON

[noun] [U] - a simple chemical substance, which exists in its pure form as diamond or graphite, and is an important part of other substances such as coal and oil, as well as being contained in all plants and animalsCarbon compounds are the basis of all living matter.Carbon (paper) is thin paper with a covering of carbon or other dark-coloured substance on one side which is used between sheets of writing to make copies.This copy's very faint - I need a new sheet of carbon.See picture: StationeryA carbon (copy) is a copy made with carbon paper.I'd better make a carbon of this memo.(figurative) She's a carbon copy of (= is exactly like) her mother.Carbon dioxide is the gas formed when carbon is burned, or when animals breathe out.carbon dioxide emissionsCarbon monoxide is the poisonous gas formed by the burning of carbon, esp. in the form of car fuel.Levels of carbon monoxide in the air are worryingly high.A postmortem revealed that he had died from carbon monoxide poisoning.Carbon dating is a method of calculating the age of extremely old objects by measuring the amount of a particular type of carbon in them.Carbon dating has put the date of the skeleton at about 4000 BC.