Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. The hypothetical universal solvent once sought by alchemists.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. The pretended universal solvent or menstruum of the alchemists. Also spelled alcahest.
Wiktionary
- n. the universal solvent sought by the alchemists
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. The fabled “universal solvent” of the alchemists; a menstruum capable of dissolving all bodies.
WordNet 3.0
- n. hypothetical universal solvent once sought by alchemists
Etymologies
- Probably coined by Paracelsus, as pseudo-Arabic. (Wiktionary)
- Medieval Latin alchahest, first used by Paracelsus (1493-1541), and said to have been coined by him in imitation of Arabic words. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“February 24th, 2005 at 12:07 pm alkahest, when I read your quote: “despite having armpit-length hair”, my first thought was “huh? armpit hair is short…””
“Report this comment to the moderators alkahest Writes:”
“Nor shall I expatiate on the alkahest of that mad scoundrel, Paracelsus, with which he pretended to reduce flints into salt; nor archaeus or spiritus rector of that visionary Van Helmont, his simple, elementary water, his gas, ferments, and transmutations; nor shall”
“We have discovered the political alkahest or universal solvent of the alchemists, and with it we reduce at once the national characteristics of foreigners into our well-known American compound.”
“Satisfied with this announcement of the discovery of the philosopher's stone, I now inquired about the sublime alkahest or universal solvent, and whether he had succeeded in deciphering the enigmatical descriptions of the ancient writers on that most curious topic.”
The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction Volume 12, No. 342, November 22, 1828
“She must bring down the spirit of the sun and blend it with her own -- for wheat partakes of the _alkahest_.”
“This, with tree-planting and culture, would double, for the soil seemed to contain the miraculous properties of _alkahest_.”
“He discoursed learnedly upon projections, cimentations, sublimations, the elixir of life, and the universal alkahest; and on the death of Delisle gave out that the secret of that great adept had been communicated to him, and to him only.”
Memoirs of Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds
“He avowed his belief in the philosopher's stone, the water of life, and the universal alkahest; and maintained that there were but two principles of all things, -- which were, condensation, the boreal or northern virtue; and rarefaction, the southern or austral virtue.”
Memoirs of Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds
“In the course of a few years, he became desperately addicted to the study of alchymy, and thought of nothing but the philosopher's stone, the elixir of life, and the universal alkahest.”
Memoirs of Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘alkahest’.
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Substancestry
Mysterious and theoretical substances and "stuff" of legend. More emphasis on the ancient, mystical, mythical, folklore, mathematical, and scientific. I won't be listing too many "sci-fi" or comed...
ylem, ichor, aether, ectoplasm, impossible object, quark star, eucharist, pixie dust, eitr, elixir of life, philosopher's stone, alkahest and 126 more...
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Logolepsy
"Luciferous Logolepsy is a collection of over 9,000 obscure English words. Though the definition of an 'English' word might seem to be straightforward, it is not. There exist so many adopted, deriv...
Anschauung, Areopagus, Argus, Briarean, Dei gratia, Dei judicium, Deo volente, Duecento, Foehn, Geflugelte Worte, Gegenschein, Hakenkreuz and 9230 more...
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Steampunk
Words used quite often in steampunk
ansible, airship, chymical, valve, clockwork, dirigible, thaumaturgy, copper, bronze, difference engine, gear, rivets and 516 more...
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[Uni][verse]
to be used.
windfall, alkahest, tektite, cislunar, conatus, pansophy, universe, macrocosm, perfect storm, star-scattered, cynosure, stellate and 22 more...
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ikahime's Words
callipygian, squidocracy, epicene, alkahest, syzygy, pysmatic, ideopraxist, quandary, vulpine, fandango, ataraxia, exsanguinate and 92 more...
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Clearinghouse
For stuff to simply reside.
calcar, pinion, espadrille, antipodes, peregrine, cormorant, tanager, vireo, farrago, undervest, passerine, oscine and 881 more...
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Evin290's Words
puerile, fastidious, blatherskite, folderol, femtosecond, redox, incarnadine, cerulean, genuflection, muslin, multitudinous, miasma and 517 more...
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jmjarmstrong's list
Words that I used to know.
geloscopy, hunker, willy nilly, harum scarum, whacko, meh, nork, misunderestimate, atrabiliousness, luftmensch, auxanometer, hyperhedonia and 1948 more...
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Cagastric Words
I do love medical history, and medical words, especially the obscure ones, but also some that are just plain fun.
cagastric, caprizant, dree, cacatory, aporrhoea, cataplasm, cicatrix, cicatrizant, surgation, theriac, vulnerary, sthenic and 41 more...
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Bux.
acerb, antiphon, aperçu, deferential, inamorata, peroration, umbrage, slattern, felonious, transmogrify, hierophant, cloacal and 24 more...
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perhapsolutely's Words
polyradiculoneuro..., abulia, abubble, abscission, abaft, zareba, abatis, abigail, abiogenesis, ablate, ablaut, abo and 1705 more...
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Paracelsus
With special emphasis on words coined by Paracelsus or otherwise associated with him.
synovia, alkahest, nostoc, sylph, undine, zinc, laudanum, homunculus, Paracelsus, Celsus, zincum, Archidoxes of Magic and 6 more...
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animaliciousness
words i created, or enjoy more than most. =]
psychogenesis, bilocation, anacronym, sideronym, alkahest, quintessence, imbue, grimoire, hysteresis, innoxious
Tweets
Looking for tweets for alkahest.
abigail Of course, the logical problem with this is that if it dissolves all bodies, you can't keep it in or near anything -- if it existed, it would by definition dissolve everything around it. Jul 20, 2010
jmjarmstrong JM got a litre of alkahest on eBay for a very good price. Jan 9, 2010