Al"che*mize (&?;), v. t. To change by alchemy; to transmute. Lovelace.
Al"che*my (&?;), n. [OF. alkemie, arquemie, F. alchimie, Ar. al-kma, fr. late Gr. &?;, for &?;, a mingling, infusion, &?; juice, liquid, especially as extracted from plants, fr. &?; to pour; for chemistry was originally the art of extracting the juices from plants for medicinal purposes. Cf. Sp. alquimia, It. alchimia. Gr. &?; is prob. akin to L. fundere to pour, Goth. guitan, AS. geótan, to pour, and so to E. fuse. See Fuse, and cf. Chemistry.] 1. An imaginary art which aimed to transmute the baser metals into gold, to find the panacea, or universal remedy for diseases, etc. It led the way to modern chemistry.
2. A mixed metal composed mainly of brass, formerly used for various utensils; hence, a trumpet. [Obs.]
Put to their mouths the sounding alchemy.
Milton.