chemical

American  

[kem-i-kuhl] / ˈkɛm ɪ kəl /

noun

• chemicals
  plural

1. a substance produced by or used in a chemical process.

2. Slang. chemicals, narcotic or mind-altering drugs or substances.

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adjective

1. of, used in, produced by, or concerned with chemistry or chemicals.

   a chemical formula; chemical agents.

2. used in chemical warfare.

   chemical weapons.

chemical British  

/ ˈkɛmɪkəl /

noun

1. any substance used in or resulting from a reaction involving changes to atoms or molecules, especially one derived artificially for practical use

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adjective

1. of or used in chemistry

   chemical balance

2. of, made from, or using chemicals

   chemical fertilizer

chemical Scientific  

/ kĕm′ĭ-kəl /

1. Relating to or produced by means of chemistry.

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1. A substance having a specific molecular composition, obtained by or used in a chemical process.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonchemical
  adjective
• prechemical
  adjective
• pseudochemical
  adjective
• semichemical
  adjective
• superchemical
  adjective
• unchemical
  adjective
• chemically
  adverb
• semichemically
  adverb
• superchemically
  adverb
• unchemically
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• chemicals
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of chemical

1570–80; chemic + -al ¹; replacing chimical chemic

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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.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

chemical chemicals

They use about 5% of the energy required for the chemical reaction necessary to make primary aluminum, but recycled metal isn’t suitable for all uses.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2026

The office’s work ranged from helping secure events like the Super Bowl to protecting chemical plants to issuing cybersecurity warnings to the private sector and the public.

From Salon ● Oct. 26, 2026

The startup’s seven-person full-time staff includes a physics Ph.D., two people with a master’s in mechanical engineering and one with a bachelor’s in chemical engineering, CEO Peter Firth said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2026

With no chemical explanation available, some researchers began questioning whether the mushrooms were responsible at all.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 25, 2026

All I need is some chemical to burn my hair off.

From "Popcorn" by Rob Harrell

Solid chemicals are generally easier to store or reroute than liquids, which require specialized transportation and storage infrastructure, it said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2026

She said the nurdles could affect wildlife in various ways, including getting stuck in animal digestive tracts and adsorbing chemicals which then may be toxic to wildlife when ingested.

From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2026

Turns out that the dopamine chamber … it’s where they put rats to test different chemicals or in order to check their dopamine levels.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 21, 2026

This and other chemicals, such as BDNF, associated with exercise, provide plausible biological pathways for how physical activity might directly influence brain health beyond its cardiovascular benefits.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 19, 2026

“I’m going to talk about the triple blend,” Brooklyn answered, referring to the special mix of chemicals used in their proposal.

From "City Spies" by James Ponti

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Related Words

• synthetic

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