elixir of life
2
9.9
- noun
- /ɪˈlɪksər əv laɪf/
- Literature
:
elixir de la vida
- In ancient alchemy, the elixir of life was believed to grant immortality.
Examples
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Many legends describe the elixir of life as a magical potion that keeps one eternally youthful.
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Do you know the secret elixir of life is sleep?
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In Egypt I shall find the key, the key to the elixir of life.
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I'm taking three drops of my elixir of life.
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Like the other alchemists at the time, he had concluded that alcohol was the true elixir of life.
Blog text (28) -
(Alcohol, on the other hand, would endure as "a veritable elixir of life.")
Blog text (23) -
The quest for the elixir of life has inspired countless stories throughout history.
Synonyms
212
6.6
A drink made to heal, harm, or cause magic
11
9.9
A magical medicine believed to cure all illnesses and make people live forever
6
7.4
A drink of the gods that stories say gives people life that never ends
5
9.9
Food and drink of the gods that make them live forever
1
9.9
A magical thing that turns metals into gold and makes people live forever
People in old stories say it changes ordinary metals into gold or gives eternal life
A thing thought to have magical or healing powers in old alchemy
A mythical substance used by alchemists that can change or heal anything
A sacred drink in Hindu stories that gives people eternal life
Antonyms
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase combines 'elixir' (a remedy believed to grant immortality or heal) with the genitive 'of life', so the meaning 'a remedy for life/immortality' is directly derivable from the constituents. The 'X of Y' compositional pattern is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows the parts would readily infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Elixir of life comes from old alchemists who imagined a special drink, the elixir, that could restore life and make someone young again. So, the phrase came to mean any thing people believed could let someone 'live forever' or stay healthy for a very long time.