noun
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a shop selling medicines, cosmetics, etc
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a qualified dispenser of prescribed medicines
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a person studying, trained in, or engaged in chemistry
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an obsolete word for alchemist
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of chemist
First recorded in 1555–65; from Greek chēm(ía) (also chēmeía, chymeía ) “art of alloying metals; alchemy” + -ist; replacing chymist, from Medieval Latin alchimista; see alchemist ( def. )
Explanation
A scientist who studies the elements that make up all matter is a chemist. If you enjoy doing experiments that involve mixing substances in test tubes, you'd probably love being a chemist. Chemists practice the science of chemistry, which examines the properties that make up everything in the universe. These working scientists examine the tiniest particles of substances, the atoms and molecules that form the earth, the oceans, and even you, yourself. Chemists also study how elements interact with each other and form new substances; we have chemists to thank for inventing penicillin, plastic, and artificial sweeteners, among many other things.
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.
See Examples For:
In late 1936, a 30-year-old Harvard chemist named Max Tishler was looking for a new opportunity.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
Even during his incarceration, the former food chemist never ceased his political activity on social media, particularly on his YouTube channel, which has 162,000 subscribers.
From Barron's ● Sep. 15, 2026
People will be able to go to their local chemist in England this autumn and get on-the-spot treatment for 12 common conditions without going to their GP first.
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
Rice University chemist Raúl Hernández Sánchez wanted to know whether oxygen could form similar compounds with a different group of metals found near the bottom of the periodic table.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026
He had no difficulty deciding between a protein chemist and a nucleic-acid chemist.
From "Double Helix" by James D. Watson
Chemists have long wondered how that process occurs, and the two Nobel laureates' discoveries have "enabled chemists to drive chemical reactions that lead to homochirality", the jury said.
From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026
The listed roles include electrical engineers, explosive experts, chemists and software specialists.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026
Earlier generations of chemists developed many foundational ideas using the experimental techniques available at the time.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026
Initially, a few hundred chemists will offer treatments for the five new conditions, NHS England says.
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
The money flowed from private donors and from government grants, the latter partially the result of contributions by Berkeley chemists and engineers to the American war effort.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
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.
