alkahest

American

[al-kuh-hest] / ˈæl kəˌhɛst /

Or alcahest

noun

the universal solvent sought by the alchemists.

alkahest British

/ ˈælkəˌhɛst /

noun

the hypothetical universal solvent sought by alchemists

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

alkahestic

adjective
alkahestical

adjective

Etymology

Origin of alkahest

First recorded in 1635–45, alkahest is from the late Medieval Latin word alchahest; probably coinage of Paracelsus

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023