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:
Pharmacist Paul Irvine said he understood that women "are concerned" but urged them to speak to their GP or local chemist who could advise them about alternatives.
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026
Shaughnessy Naughton, a chemist who worked on drug discovery and breast cancer research, founded 3.14 Action in 2016 after two unsuccessful tries for a congressional seat in the Philadelphia suburbs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2026
While many scientists have made significant contributions in the field, three regularly mentioned for the Nobel are Canadian endocrinologist Daniel Drucker, Danish physician Jens Juul Holst and Yugoslav-born American chemist Svetlana Mojsov.
From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026
Linus Pauling was a chemist from the United States who won two Nobel Prizes.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 27, 2026
Dieldrin, named for a German chemist, Diels, is about 5 times as toxic as DDT when swallowed but 40 times as toxic when absorbed through the skin in solution.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
Using that structural information, the chemists were able to make the connection between the molecule's two halves more rigid.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 8, 2026
US chemists David Allara and Ralph Nuzzo along with Israel's Jacob Sagiv would then be favourites.
From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026
Tishler was impressed by the company, especially a paper on vitamins written by a group of young Merck chemists.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
Patients can be treated for 27 different conditions at chemists in Scotland.
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
But chemists do not assign a purpose or function to a collision of two gas molecules, nor do they seek an ultimate cause for the collision.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
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