A white waxy substance, resembling spermaceti, tasteless
   and odorless, and obtained from coal tar, wood tar, petroleum, etc., by
   distillation. It is used as an illuminant and lubricant. It is very
   inert, not being acted upon by most of the strong chemical reagents. It
   was formerly regarded as a definite compound, but is now known to be a
   complex mixture of several higher hydrocarbons of the methane or
   marsh-gas series; hence, by extension, any substance, whether solid,
   liquid, or gaseous, of the same chemical series; thus coal gas and
   kerosene consist largely of paraffins.