alembic
Americannoun
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a vessel with a beaked cap or head, formerly used in distilling.
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anything that transforms, purifies, or refines.
noun
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an obsolete type of retort used for distillation
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anything that distils or purifies
Etymology
Origin of alembic
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, variant of alambic, from Medieval Latin alambicus, from dialectal Arabic al anbīq “the still,” from Greek ámbix (stem ámbīk- ) “cup, vessel with a spout”
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
