Chemist is a person who studies, experiments with, or sells chemicals, often in a laboratory setting. It can also refer to a practitioner in chemistry who conducts experiments and analyzes substances. In everyday use, a chemist might work in research, quality control, or education, applying chemical knowledge to develop products or solve problems.
"The chemist tested the sample and reported the results to the team."
"She trained as a chemist and now works in pharmaceutical research."
"We visited the university lab to meet the chemist who explained the reaction."
"The local chemist sold me a bottle of reagents for the school experiment."
Chemist comes from the Old French term chymiste, from Latin chemista, which itself derives from the Arabic al-kimiya (alchemy) and ultimately from the Greekχημεῖν (khumein) meaning 'to pour, to mix.' The word traveled through medieval Latin as alchemista and French as chimiste before entering English as chemist around the 17th century, initially denoting practitioners of alchemy who studied substances and their transformations. Over time, as chemistry emerged as a distinct scientific discipline, chemist shifted to designate a professional scientist trained in chemistry. The 18th and 19th centuries saw mechanization and the codification of chemical knowledge, solidifying the modern sense of a chemist as a science professional who performs experiments, analyzes substances, and contributes to product development. The usage broadened in parallel with the expansion of pharmaceutical, industrial, and academic chemistry, while still sometimes appearing in everyday language to describe a shop that sells chemicals (historically in some regions). First known English attestations appear in print in the 1600s, reflecting both alchemical and early modern chemical practice.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "Chemist" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "Chemist"
-ist sounds
Practice with these rhyming pairs to improve your pronunciation consistency:
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Pronounce as ˈkɛm.ɪst in US and UK: two syllables with stress on the first. Start with the 'keh' sound, then a short 'mih' and end with a clear 'st.' The initial consonant cluster is /k/ + /t͡s/ combination in many dialects, giving a crisp ending. See audio reference in Pronounce tools for practice.
Common errors: misplacing stress (unintentionally stressing the second syllable), or saying 'ke-my-st' with an extra vowel; pronouncing 'ch' too hard as /tʃ/ instead of /k/, or blending the /s/ into the final /t/ too quickly. Correction: keep stress on the first syllable /ˈkɛm/ and release the final /st/ crisply; avoid adding a vowel between /m/ and /st/, and don’t turn /k/ into /tʃ/.
US tends to use /ˈkɛmɪst/ with rhotic vowel in some speakers; UK speakers often maintain /ˈkemɪst/ with a slightly shorter /e/ and crisper /st/; Australian tends to similar to UK but with potential vowel relaxation in /ɪ/ depending on speaker; overall the word remains two syllables with initial stressed /ˈ/.
Two consonant clusters in sequence at the end (/m/ followed by /st/) require precise timing and air flow; the /e/ vowel can vary between /e/ and /eɪ/ in some dialects; distinguishing the alveolar /t/ and /s/ in a quick final cluster can be hard; focus on crisp /st/ and keeping the vowel short.
In 'chemist', the 'ch' is not /tʃ/ but /k/ as in 'cat' due to historical spelling; some learners wonder if the 'mi' is a long or short vowel—it's short /ɪ/ as in 'kit'; final 'st' is a sustained cluster; keep lips slightly rounded on the /ɪ/ to match American and UK patterns.
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