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chemical definition

chemi·cal (kem′i kəl)

adjective

  1. of or having to do with chemistry
  2. made by or used in chemistry
  3. operated or made by the use of chemicals chemical burns
  4. ☆ of or involving the use of a drug, alcoholic liquor, etc. chemical dependency

Etymology: chemic + -al

noun

  1. any substance used in or obtained by a chemical process
  2. ☆ Slang a drug, alcoholic beverage, etc.

Related Forms:

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Alternate definitions:

medical chemical definition - medical

chemical Synonyms

chemical

modif.

analytic, synthetic, synthesized, petrochemical, biochemical, psychochemical, actinic, artificial, made in the laboratory, ersatz, alchemical.


chemical

n.

substance, synthetic, compound; see drug 2, element 2, medicine 2.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

chemical Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • disrupt: This is the first experimental evidence of an endocrine disrupting chemical causing the illness.

Adjective modifier

  • toxic: These homes have been built using sustainably sourced materials, avoiding toxic chemicals commonly found in new houses.

Modifies a noun

  • reaction: They can only speed up chemical reactions that would normally not proceed fast enough to be of any use to the cell.

Noun used with modifier

  • specialty: Originally working at ICI Australia, Carol has a broad career in base, specialty chemicals, most recently in paints.
chemical usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

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MLA Style

"chemical." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 4 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/chemical>

APA Style

chemical. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 4th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/chemical

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