chemical
Americannoun
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a substance produced by or used in a chemical process.
-
Slang. chemicals, narcotic or mind-altering drugs or substances.
adjective
-
of, used in, produced by, or concerned with chemistry or chemicals.
a chemical formula; chemical agents.
-
used in chemical warfare.
chemical weapons.
noun
adjective
-
of or used in chemistry
chemical balance
-
of, made from, or using chemicals
chemical fertilizer
Other Word Forms
- chemically adverb
- nonchemical adjective
- prechemical adjective
- pseudochemical adjective
- semichemical adjective
- semichemically adverb
- superchemical adjective
- superchemically adverb
- unchemical adjective
- unchemically adverb
Etymology
Origin of chemical
Explanation
A chemical is any mix of raw elements: hydrogen + oxygen produce the chemical water. Water is created by a change in the chemistry of hydrogen and oxygen atoms — a chemical change. Be cautious of the negative reaction people have to chemical substances. Chemicals often bring to mind deadly substances, such as asbestos or deadly chemical weapons. But many chemicals are part of our everyday life. Our lives would be drastically different without chemical compounds — think of the infection that would result if we didn't have the chemical hydrogen peroxide for cleaning out cuts.
Vocabulary lists containing chemical
Matter and Energy 1: Atoms and Molecules
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Chemical Reactions - Introductory
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"Handle with Care"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Bays said the meteor was spotted widely because it was "very bright", due to the chemical make up of the object, which included magnesium.
From BBC • Apr. 13, 2026
Copenhagen paid nearly $30m in 2018 to clean up chemical spills in Ikateq and another base, but it wasn’t enough to cover larger installations elsewhere.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 11, 2026
“Even within the food program, food chemical issues have largely taken a backseat to more traditional food safety issues, like food pathogens, E. coli and foodborne illness outbreaks.”
From Salon • Apr. 11, 2026
The enzyme MOF places chemical tags called histone acetylations onto chromatin.
From Science Daily • Apr. 9, 2026
He hoped he hadn’t ruined it by filling it with chemical powder.
From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan
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.
