transmutation
- noun
- /ˌtrænzmjuˈteɪʃən/
- Specialized
- The experiment demonstrated the transmutation of uranium into plutonium through nuclear fission.
- transmutation of elements
Examples
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Especially if they involve the magic transmutation of elements outside a nuclear reactor without the production of neutrons.
Blog text (11) -
The transmutation of one element to another through nuclear reactions was a hot subject up through the thirties.
Academic text (2000) -
I have a question about transmutation reactors.
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The lab was devoted to experiments involving PX-41, a transmutation serum.
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Scholars differ on whether this God is a transmutation of earlier Egyptian or Moabite deities.
Academic text (1997) -
Scientists are studying the transmutation of elements to understand how stars create new materials.
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The transmutation of lead into gold is often referenced in alchemical texts, illustrating early scientific aspirations.
Antonyms
How Changed
- Specialized
- Specialized
- Specialized
- Specialized
Surface Forms
Morphology
transmutation = mutation (transparent) = trans + mutation
Although used in a technical, nuclear-physics sense here, the structure is still 'trans-' + 'mutation' and the meaning 'changing one element into another' follows directly from the parts.
Etymology
Transmutation comes from the Latin parts trans- 'across' and mut- 'change', and it shares the root of the common word mutation ('a change'). In physics, transmutation helps you remember the idea of changing one chemical element into another, for example when nuclear reactions turn one element into a different one.