chemischen

Chemischen is the inflected form of the German adjective chemisch, meaning chemical or related to chemistry. It describes nouns that pertain to chemistry, chemicals, or chemical processes. In German, the ending of chemisch changes according to case, gender, and number. For example: Der chemische Prozess (nominative singular masculine); Den chemischen Prozess (accusative singular masculine); Dem chemischen Prozess (dative singular masculine). In plural: Die chemischen Substanzen (nominative plural); Die chemischen Reaktionen (nominative plural). Without a definite article, strong endings appear differently, as in chemische Substanzen or chemische Reaktionen.

Etymology and development: The adjective chemisch derives from the noun Chemie, which entered German in the early modern period, influenced by the French chimie and ultimately tracing back to medieval alchemy terms found in Latin, Greek and Arabic sources. The broader term Chemie refers to the science of matter, its composition, structure and transformations. The related noun Chemiker denotes a person who studies or works in this field.

Usage and examples: Chemischen compounds or substances are commonly described in scientific writing as chemische Verbindungen (neutral plural) or chemische Substanzen. In everyday language one might speak of chemische Reaktionen (chemical reactions) or chemische Eigenschaften (chemical properties). The form chemischen appears in possessive or determiner contexts such as den chemischen Stoffen, der chemischen Analyse, or einer chemischen Lösung.

See also: Chemie, Chemiker, chemische Reaktion, chemische Verbindung.