chemistry

[ kem-uh-stree ]
See synonyms for chemistry on Thesaurus.com
noun,plural chem·is·tries.
  1. the science that deals with the composition and properties of substances and various elementary forms of matter.: Compare element (def. 2).

  2. chemical properties, reactions, phenomena, etc.: the chemistry of carbon.

  1. the interaction of one personality with another: The chemistry between him and his boss was all wrong.

  2. sympathetic understanding; rapport: the astonishing chemistry between the actors.

  3. any or all of the elements that make up something: the chemistry of love.

Origin of chemistry

1
First recorded in 1590–1600; chemist + -ry; replacing earlier chymistry, chimistry

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use chemistry in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for chemistry

chemistry

/ (ˈkɛmɪstrɪ) /


nounplural -tries
  1. the branch of physical science concerned with the composition, properties, and reactions of substances: See also inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, physical chemistry

  2. the composition, properties, and reactions of a particular substance

  1. the nature and effects of any complex phenomenon: the chemistry of humour

  2. informal a reaction, taken to be instinctual, between two persons

Origin of chemistry

1
C17: from earlier chimistrie, from chimist chemist

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for chemistry

chemistry

[ kĕmĭ-strē ]


  1. The scientific study of the structure, properties, and reactions of the chemical elements and the compounds they form.

  2. The composition, structure, properties, and reactions of a substance.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Cultural definitions for chemistry

chemistry

The study of the composition, properties, and reactions of matter, particularly at the level of atoms and molecules.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.