Library / English Dictionary |
TRANSMUTATION
Pronunciation (US): | (GB): |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
An act that changes the form or character or substance of something
Synonyms:
transmutation; transubstantiation
Classified under:
Nouns denoting acts or actions
Hypernyms ("transmutation" is a kind of...):
conversion (the act of changing from one use or function or purpose to another)
Derivation:
transmute (change or alter in form, appearance, or nature)
Sense 2
Meaning:
Synonyms:
shift; transformation; transmutation
Classified under:
Hypernyms ("transmutation" is a kind of...):
alteration; change; modification (an event that occurs when something passes from one state or phase to another)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "transmutation"):
advance; betterment; improvement (a change for the better; progress in development)
population shift (a change in the relative numbers of the different groups of individuals making up a population)
pyrolysis (transformation of a substance produced by the action of heat)
sea change (a profound transformation)
sublimation ((chemistry) a change directly from the solid to the gaseous state without becoming liquid)
tin disease; tin pest; tin plague (the transformation of ordinary white tin into powdery grey tin at very cold temperatures)
changeover; conversion; transition (an event that results in a transformation)
degeneration; retrogression (passing from a more complex to a simpler biological form)
strengthening (becoming stronger)
weakening (becoming weaker)
Sense 3
Meaning:
(physics) the change of one chemical element into another (as by nuclear decay or radioactive bombardment)
Example:
the transmutation of base metals into gold proved to be impossible
Classified under:
Nouns denoting natural events
Hypernyms ("transmutation" is a kind of...):
alteration; change; modification (an event that occurs when something passes from one state or phase to another)
Domain category:
natural philosophy; physics (the science of matter and energy and their interactions)
Derivation:
transmute (alter the nature of (elements))