adj.
Pronunciation: ˌ kär-b ə - ' ni-f( ə -)r ə s
Function: adjective
Date: 1799
1 : producing or containing carbon or coal
2 capitalized : of, relating to, or being the period of the Paleozoic era between the Devonian and the Permian or the corresponding system of rocks that includes coal beds ― see GEOLOGIC TIME table
– Carboniferous noun