noun · 7 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
/ɪˈlɪksə(ɹ)/
/ə-/
/-ɪə(ɹ)/
US:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
rhymes with -ɪksə(ɹ)
CMU ARPABET:IH0 L IH1 K S ER0
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
A liquid which converts lead to gold.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: alchemy, pseudoscience
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
A substance or liquid which is believed to cure all ills and give eternal life.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: alchemy, pseudoscience
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
The alleged cure for all ailments; cure-all, panacea.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: broadly
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
noun
Meaning 4
A sweet flavored liquid (usually containing a small amount of alcohol) used in compounding medicines to be taken by mouth in order to mask an unpleasant taste.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Qualifier: pharmacy
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
5
noun
Meaning 5
a substance believed to cure all ills
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
hypothetical substance that the alchemists believed to be capable of changing base metals into gold
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: philosopher's stone, philosophers' stone
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: substance
7
noun
Meaning 7
a sweet flavored liquid (usually containing a small amount of alcohol) used in compounding medicines to be taken by mouth in order to mask an unpleasant taste
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: liquid
History
Etymology
From Medieval Latin elixir (“philosopher's stone”), from Arabic اَلْإِكْسِير (al-ʔiksīr, “philosopher's stone”), from Ancient Greek ξηρίον (xēríon, “powder for drying wounds”), from ξηρός (xērós, “dry”).
Across languages
Translations
76 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Afrikaans:
elikser
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Arabic:
إِكْسِير
(ʔiksīr)
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Bulgarian:
еликси́р
(eliksír)
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Catalan:
elixir
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Chinese Mandarin:
鍊金藥 /炼金药
(liànjīnyào)
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Danish:
eliksir
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Finnish:
eliksiiri
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Georgian:
ელექსირი
(eleksiri)
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
German:
Elixier
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Greek:
ελιξήριο
(elixírio)
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Hungarian:
elixír
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Italian:
elisir
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Japanese:
エリクサー
(erikusā)
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Korean:
엘릭서
(ellikseo)
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Lithuanian:
eliksyras
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Norwegian Bokmål:
eliksir
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Norwegian Nynorsk:
eliksir
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Portuguese:
elixir
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Russian:
эликси́р
(eliksír)
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Spanish:
elixir
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Spanish:
elíxir
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Turkish:
iksir
— alchemy: liquid which was believed to turn non-precious metals to gold
Afrikaans:
elikser
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Afrikaans:
alheilmiddel
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Afrikaans:
panasee
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Bulgarian:
еликси́р
(eliksír)
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Chinese Mandarin:
仙丹
(xiāndān)
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Chinese Mandarin:
萬能藥 /万能药
(wànnéngyào)
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Danish:
eliksir
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Dutch:
elixer
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Finnish:
eliksiiri
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Georgian:
ელექსირი
(eleksiri)
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
German:
Elixier
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
German:
Zaubertrunk
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
German:
Heilmittel
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Greek:
ελιξήριο
(elixírio)
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Hindi:
अमृत
(amŕt)
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Hungarian:
elixír
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Italian:
elisir
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Japanese:
万能薬
(bannōyaku)
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Japanese:
生く薬
(ikugusuri)
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Japanese:
生き薬
(ikigusuri)
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Kazakh:
сиқырлы сусын
(siqyrly susyn)
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Norwegian Bokmål:
eliksir
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Norwegian Nynorsk:
eliksir
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Persian:
اکسیر
(eksir)
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Polish:
eliksir
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Portuguese:
elixir
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Russian:
эликси́р
(eliksír)
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Russian:
панаце́я
(panacéja)
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Scottish Gaelic:
brìgh
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Scottish Gaelic:
ìocshlaint
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Spanish:
elixir
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Spanish:
elíxir
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
Turkish:
iksir
— liquid which is believed to cure all ills
