# chemical
## English
### Etymology

From chemic (“alchemy”) +‎ -al (“related to”).

### Pronunciation

* enPR: kĕm'ĭk-əl, IPA: /ˈkɛmɪkəl/
* Audio (US):(file)
* Audio (UK):(file)
* Rhymes: -ɛmɪkəl

### Adjective

chemical (not comparable)
* Of or relating to chemistry.
    chemical experiments
    the chemical properties of iron
    Pentalene has chemical formula C$_8$H$_6$
** 1883, Science, volumes 1-2, page 279:The physiology of matter in the abstract is dynamical, that of mineral species is both dynamical and chemical, while that of organized forms is at once dynamical, chemical, and biotical.
** 2006, Andrew Adamatzky, “Reaction-Diffusion Reactive Wetware”, in Tamio Arai, editor, Intelligent Autonomous Systems 9, IOS Press, page 3:We pinpoint all essential ingredients of intelligence found in spatio-temporal dynamics of nonlinear chemical systems, and show outlines of future designs and protypes of chemical intelligent "gooware".
* Of or relating to a material or processes not commonly found in nature or in a particular product.
* (obsolete) Of or relating to alchemy.

#### Further reading

* Chemistry on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

### Noun

chemical (plural chemicals)
* (chemistry, sciences) Any specific chemical element or chemical compound or alloy.
    Hydrogen and sulphur are both chemicals.
* (colloquial) An artificial chemical compound.
    I color my hair with henna, not chemicals.
** 2025 January 15, “FDA moves to eliminate carcinogenic Red 3 from foods”, in Center for Science in the Public Interest‎:CSPI says the Trump Administration could take steps to protect consumers from each of these chemicals and support FDA’s broader post-market assessment efforts. It could ensure that FDA sets health-protective limits on heavy metals, like lead, arsenic, and cadmium, in foods consumed by children.
* (slang) An addictive drug.

#### Usage notes

* The noun is frequently used in a slang and more specific non-technical way (2nd and 3rd definition) by the general public. Chemists and those who understand chemistry may gravitate toward the first, but the term "substance" is preferred usage.

#### Translations

    The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

### Derived terms

* actinochemical
* aerochemical
* agrochemical
* allelochemical
* allochemical
* antichemical
* astrochemical
* baryochemical
* biochemical
* biophysicochemical
* bio-physico-chemical
* carbochemical
* chemical abortion
* chemical affinity
* chemical agent
* chemical beam epitaxy
* chemical biology
* chemical bomb
* chemical bond
* chemical car
* chemical castration
* chemical cell
* chemical change
* chemical clock
* chemical composition
* chemical cosh
* chemical database
* chemical decomposition
* chemical defense
* chemical dependency
* chemical dermatitis
* chemical ecology
* chemical element
* chemical energy
* chemical engine
* chemical engineer
* chemical engineering
* chemical equation
* chemical equilibrium
* chemicalese
* chemical fingerprint
* chemical flux
* chemical formula
* chemical-free
* chemical genomics
* chemical hazard
* chemical hood
* chemical horn
* chemical imbalance
* chemical indicator
* chemical industry
* chemicalization
* chemicalize
* chemical kinetics
* chemical laser
* chemical law
* chemical lithosphere
* chemically
* chemical messenger
* chemical nomenclature
* chemical oceanography
* chemical oxygen generator
* chemical pathology
* chemical peel
* chemical peritonitis
* chemical physics
* chemical plant
* chemical pregnancy
* chemical property
* chemical proteomics
* chemical reaction
* chemical reactor
* chemical restraint
* chemical rocket
* chemical sensitivity
* chemical series
* chemical shift
* chemical space
* chemical species
* chemical structure
* chemical substance
* chemical suit
* chemical symbol
* chemical toilet
* chemical warfare
* chemical weapon
* chemigation
* chemmie
* chemtrail
* chemzyme
* clinicochemical
* colloidochemical
* cosmochemical
* crystallochemical
* cytochemical
* dry chemical
* electrochemical
* femtochemical
* fine chemical
* fluorochemical
* forever chemical
* geochemical
* glaciochemical
* hadrochemical
* haematochemical
* hematochemical
* histochemical
* hydrochemical
* iatrochemical
* immunochemical
* infochemical
* isochemical
* lithochemical
* macrochemical
* magnetochemical
* mechanicochemical
* mechanochemical
* metachemical
* metallochemical
* microchemical
* morphochemical
* multichemical
* multiple chemical sensitivity
* mycochemical
* nanochemical
* necrochemical
* neurochemical
* nonchemical
* oenochemical
* oleochemical
* optochemical
* organochemical
* perfluorochemical
* petrochemical
* pharmacochemical
* photochemical
* physicochemical
* physiochemical
* phytochemical
* piezochemical
* prechemical
* protochemical
* pseudochemical
* psychochemical
* pyrochemical
* quasichemical
* radiochemical
* regiochemical
* research chemical
* rotochemical
* semichemical
* semiochemical
* sociochemical
* sonochemical
* spectrochemical
* stereochemical
* stoichiochemical
* superchemical
* technochemical
* thanatochemical
* thermochemical
* topochemical
* tribochemical
* ultramicrochemical
* unchemical
* wet chemical
* xenochemical
* zoochemical

### Related terms

* alchemical
* chemist
* chemistry

### See also

* molecule
* reagent

### Anagrams

* Michalec, alchemic