Alchemy — Meaning, Definition, & Examples | SAT Vocabulary
A favorite word of many that paved the way for scientists to create the field of chemistry.
📚️ Definition of Alchemy
Alchemy (noun): A seemingly magical process of transformation, creation, or combination; historically, the medieval forerunner of chemistry that sought to turn base metals into gold. Example: the alchemy of great cooking.
🗣️ Pronunciation of Alchemy
IPA: /ˈæl.kə.mi/ (See IPA key)
Respelling: AL-kuh-mee
📰 Examples of Alchemy
Here are some examples of the word alchemy:
The chef’s alchemy transformed leftover chicken and day-old bread into a diner-worthy dish.
Silicon Valley’s startup culture is famous for its seeming alchemy, turning garage tinkering into billion-dollar companies like HP, Apple, Google, and a few more that aren’t yet household names.
“The real alchemy consists in being able to turn gold back again into something else; and that’s the secret that most of your friends have lost.” — Edith Wharton, The House of Mirth (1905)
🧠 Vocab Challenge: What Does Multifarious Mean?
Recently, we learned the word multifarious. Do you remember what it means? Test your knowledge:
MULTIFARIOUS most nearly means
A) monolithic
B) diverse
C) spurious
D) perfunctory
Post your answer below! I will update in the comments. (Note to self—add monolithic, spurious, and perfunctory to my list of words to define.)
Diverse!