Ma'anar ƙamus na kalmar "carbonyl" ƙungiya ce mai aiki da ta ƙunshi nau'in carbon atom wanda aka haɗe da atom ɗin oxygen, tare da ragowar shaidu biyu na carbon atom yawanci ana shagaltar da su ta wasu atom ko ƙungiyoyi. Ana amfani da kalmar "carbonyl" sau da yawa a cikin sinadarai na kwayoyin halitta don komawa ga mahadi masu dauke da wannan rukuni na aiki, kamar aldehydes, ketones, acid carboxylic, da abubuwan da suka samo asali. Kalmar kuma tana iya komawa zuwa hadadden karfen da aka samar lokacin da aka hada atom din karfe zuwa hadakar carbonyl ligand, kamar a cikin karfe carbonyls kamar nickel carbonyl ko iron pentacarbonyl.